Yum.  You know when you read a recipe, and you just know it is going to be delicious. 

 Well, here we go.  

I haven’t got around to any interesting cooking for a while, but on Saturday I ventured into the world of beef ribs for the very first time.  

I was inspired because Elise was telling me how she had delicious beef ribs the previous weekend. 

 And last year I had this great meal at the Airey’s Inlet Pub that was beef ribs  with worstershire sauce and ginger with a fruity salad (dried fig and pear).  And I really loved it. 

 So, I thought I’d give the whole shebang a crack. 

I looked up a few recipes for ribs with worstershire and ginger, and Jamie Oliver had one that looked good, but it required 8 hours of slow cooking.  Before the final hour with the sticky sauce.  And given that it was 2pm, and I wanted to eat them that night, it wasn’t practical. 

 And then I came across a recipe for Filipino Ribs.  And when I read it it all sounded delicious.  And it was quite simple and straight forward.  And I had all the ingredients … 

 It was good.  And the kids loved it (well the ribs, not so much the salad, but there’s no surprise there hey?) 

 Note, it was VERY rich.  And this recipe was WAY TOO MUCH for our little family.  Definitely a great dinner to cook for guests though! The recipe did say it was for 10-12 people.  And that would be about right! 

 So here’s what I made, if you feel inspired.

 

Filipino Beef Ribs

• 3kg beef ribs (I got the butcher to cut each rib in to 3 pieces)
• 6 whole star anise
• 2 onions, cut into wedges
• 4 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 0.25 teaspoon black pepper

Combine these in a large pot and simmer for at least 1.5 hours.  I cooked mine for 2 hours. 

The Sauce

• 1 finely chopped onion 
• 1 tablespoon of oil 
• 1 tablespoon ginger
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon worstershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 0.5 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

To make the sauce sauté the onion in the oil til soft in a small saucepan then add all the other ingredients.

Use tongs and place the ribs in a single layer on a baking dish and brush them with the sauce.

Then cook them in the oven at 200 degrees for 45 minutes and baste them a couple of times with the sauce along the way. 

The Salad

• Rocket
• Cucumber
• Pomegranate seeds
• Fresh figs, quartered
• Feta
• Pomegranate sauce/molasses
• Balsamic vinegar
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper

I just combined the rocket with finely sliced and halved cucumber and the seeds of the pomegranate.  I added in the fig (you can also use thinly sliced dried fig).  And dressed it with the mix of pomegranate sauce, vinegar and olive oil, salt and pepper.  And crumbled feta over the top.

The sweet and sour of the salad cut through the richness of the ribs nicely.

The whole thing together was REALLY GOOD.  Really.  You should try it!