Braised Asian Short Ribs

Braised Asian short ribs are baked in a Dutch oven with bok choy & carrots for flavorful fall-off-the-bone tender meat.  Serve over noodles or rice!

If there’s one comfort food I live for in the winter, it’s short ribs. 

It’s always a close call between gnocchi and short ribs when they’re both on the menu.  They each have a special piece of my heart ;).

These braised Asian short ribs are cooked in a Dutch oven on the stove top, then finished in the oven for that perfectly tender melt-in-your-mouth kinda meat.

The Asian flavors used in these short ribs create a bold, yet warming dish with a little help from Chinese Five spice, dark soy sauce and star anise.

I love making these on a lazy Sunday afternoon; since they take a good chunk of time to cook, I can relax while the magic happens in my oven 🙂

How long does it take to braise short ribs?

You want to cook the short ribs on low heat for a long period of time, typically, between 300-325 degrees for 3-4 hours. 

This allows the meat to become tender and really absorb the braising liquids. 

After the 3-4 hour mark, you’ll know the short ribs are done when the meat is literally falling off the bone!

(P.S. be aware of your house smelling SOOO unbelievably good)

Are beef ribs and short ribs the same thing?

No, they are from two different parts of the cow, therefore they should be prepared differently.

However, both types of ribs need low cooking temperatures for a long cooking time for maximum flavor and tenderness!

How to make braised Asian Short Ribs in a Dutch oven:

1. Coat the short ribs with Chinese five spice, then pan sear on your stove top until lightly browned on all sides.  Remove and set aside.
2. Add in the carrots, onions, garlic and ginger and sauté until slightly softened, about 4 minutes.  Add rice vinegar, stir and cook for 1 minute.
3. Stir in soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, star anise, cinnamon stick, beef stock, water and scallions.  Bring to a simmer, add back the short ribs, cover and place in the oven for 3-4 hours until meat is tender and falling off the bone.
4. Add in the bok choy the last 30 minutes of cooking.
5. Serve over white rice, brown rice or rice noodles.

Tips for making short ribs:

• Let the Chinese five spice rest on the meat for about 20-30 minutes so that the flavors can start to infuse into the meat.
• If you don’t have a Dutch oven, you can use any type of oven safe pan. You’ll need to cover it with aluminum foil to lock in the moisture (if no lid is available).
• This recipe calls for dark soy sauce which is thicker and bolder in flavor than regular soy, however it may be difficult to find. I get mine at my local Asian market but you can also find it on Amazon (affiliate link)
• I like using Asian rice noodles that are medium sized. You can also use large wide noodles or even ramen noodles.

What goes good with Asian short ribs?

• This recipe uses carrots, scallions and bok choy (chinese cabbage) which all go great with the Asian flavors used the recipe.  
• You could also use broccoli instead of the bok choy or nappa cabbage; just be sure to add it to the end of the cooking so it remains a little “al-dente”
• I prefer noodles with this dish because they really soak up the awesome braising liquid, but you could also use rice.