Korean Short Rib Tacos

Name: Korean Short Rib Tacos
Ingredients: 3 pounds bone-in beef short ribs; Kosher or sea salt; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 Asian pear; 1/2 cup prune juice; 1/2 cup water; 1/4 cup soy sauce; 1/4 cup mirin (Japanese cooking wine); 2 tablespoons sake; 2 (1-inch) pieces fresh ginger, peeled and smashed; 4 whole star anise; 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns; 3 or 4 corn tortillas, preferably homemade (page 84); 1/3 cup Cabbage and Pear Kimchi (page 18) or your favorite store-bought version; 1 scallion, white and green parts, diagonally sliced 1/4-inch thick; 1 teaspoon sesame seeds; Asian-style hot sauce, such as Sriracha sauce (optional)

December 14, 2011

This recipe is as much of a mash-up as the idea of Korean tacos in the first place, made famous and trendy by the Kogi BBQ truck in Los Angeles. I took the idea of using prune juice to tenderize and marinate short ribs from Rozanne Gold’s Recipes 1-2-3 and the idea to include Asian pear, scallions, and sesame seeds from Joanne Chang of Boston’s Myers + Chang restaurant. This makes enough short ribs for three or four meals, depending on your appetite. (In addition to these tacos, you can toss the short ribs with egg noodles, eat over polenta, or layer into a particularly sophisticated take on nachos.)

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