Hope the Beef Short Ribs Are Done Steaming Now
If you’re looking for a light, peppery bone-in meat, the recipe I tried might be for you. However, given the amount of time I spent checking the ribs for doneness and extending the cooking time, I didn’t feel it was worth the effort.
Below are some links to more details, including photos:
My Story
I had purchased a package of beef short ribs a couple weeks ago and wanted to cook them using a new recipe. My search for a recipe led me back to a website where I previously had found one for braised beef shank/oxtail noodles.
Inspiring Recipe
This time from the blog, The Woks of Life, I tried Dim Sum Steamed Beef Short Ribs with Black Pepper.
First Try
In addition to the beef short ribs, I had to buy a couple more items. After that, I was ready to start the process.
Ingredients to Use
I measured out two pounds of beef short ribs, so all I had to do was change the number of servings on the recipe website’s recipe converter from four to eight and the amount needed for the rest of the ingredients appeared.
As for the red onions, the supermarket that I visited didn’t have any small ones, so I ended up with more than required (.95 pounds, which is almost a large one, instead of 2 small ones.)
Lastly, when it came to the peppercorns, I didn’t use only the black ones. Instead, I replaced them with a blended version, since that’s the bottle I had open.
Steps to Prepare
Pertaining to the instructions provided on the recipe, I tried to follow them, but eventually they just became guidelines.
In step 1, I didn’t read the instructions carefully enough and added everything listed for the marinade, including the onion, into the bowl of rib slices and realized after that I was supposed to mix the marinade ingredients before adding the ribs and onion. How I remedied the situation was as follows:
- Took the ribs and as much of the onion slices out of the bowl
- Mixed the remaining marinade
- Coated each slice of rib with the marinade and added it back into the bowl
- Added the onion slices back into the bowl and mixed
For step 2, I didn’t wait for the ribs to come to room temperature because I needed dinner done as soon as possible. Also, before mixing the ribs, I cut them into bite-sized pieces. Lastly, I chose to add sesame oil instead of avocado oil to the mixture with the corn starch and freshly ground pepper.
When I got to step 5, I added the large plate into the wok without turning the heat off, so I didn’t have to wait for the electric stove to bring the water back to a boil. Also, since 10 minutes wasn’t enough time to steam two pounds of ribs, I ended up moving the ribs, that were still red, to the top of the plate every 10 minutes until they were done enough.
Time to Eat
After steaming the ribs for a total of 40 minutes, I was finally able to taste them.
Recipe Rating
Below were the results of the recipe after the first try:
| Number of Ingredients | Effort (Low🤏, Medium🤏🤏, High🤏🤏🤏) | Cost per Serving (<$2💰, $2-5💰💰, >$5💰💰💰) | Taste (Not for me🤔, Trying Again🙂, Eating Regularly😋) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1️⃣4️⃣ | 🤏 | 💰💰 | 🙂 |
When I chewed into a piece of rib, the meat was soft, but some parts were still pinkish. Furthermore, the dish needed more pepper flavor.
Second Try
The goal of the second try was for me to follow the recipe closer and come out with ribs that were cooked well-done and had more pepper flavor.
Ingredients to Use
This time, I had enough short ribs to make 10 servings. The only measurements that I planned to deviate from the website’s recipe converter were as follows for the marinade:
- Use 2/3 teaspoon instead of 0.63 teaspoon of baking soda
- Use 2/3 teaspoon instead of .63 teaspoon of sugar
- Use 2/3 teaspoon instead of 0.63 teaspoon of dark soy sauce
- Use 1 clove instead of 1.25 clove of garlic (See section below for what I actually did.)
- Use 2 medium instead of 2.5 small red onions, due to what was available at the supermarket
As for the black pepper, I continued to use the pepper that I had the first time around.
Steps to Prepare
For the second time around, I kept some of the intended steps from the first time, while following more of the the steps in the recipe. However, there were surprises that occurred in steps 2, 4, and 5.
In step 2, even though I placed the refrigerated ribs on the counter for a little over an hour, they didn’t come to room temperature. Because I couldn’t wait any longer to start dinner, I continued the process, including adding avocado instead of sesame oil to the mixture needed for steaming the dish.
In step 4, since I couldn’t see the garlic while I was transferring the ribs and some of the onion slices to the steaming plate, I thought I had forgotten it in step 1. As a result, I added a clove to the plate, only to find out later after emptying the marinade bowl that it was hidden in the onion slices.
For step 5, I started steaming the dish for 20 minutes, then flipped the rib pieces, added more peppers, and steamed them for another 20 minutes. Next, because the ribs weren’t all well-cooked yet, I removed the cooked ribs, topped off the remaining ribs with pepper, steamed the dish for another 10 minutes, and repeated this process of removing cooked ribs, adding pepper, and steaming for the next 20 minutes.
Towards the end of this process, I was getting tired, so I just steamed the dish for the last five minutes without adding any pepper.
Time to Eat
After a total of 75 minutes of steaming the ribs, there were still several pieces with a pink tinge, but I was beyond ready for dinner!
Recipe Rating
Below are the results of the recipe from the second attempt:
| Number of Ingredients | Effort (Low🤏, Medium🤏🤏, High🤏🤏🤏) | Cost per Serving (<$2💰, $2-5💰💰, >$5💰💰💰) | Taste (Not for me🤔, Trying Again🙂, Eating Regularly😋) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1️⃣4️⃣ | 🤏 | 💰💰 | 🤔 |
Though the ribs were mostly well-done and with more pepper flavor, I prefer a more complex taste for this cut of meat, so I will likely not investigate the ideal cooking time or equipment for this dish.
Though I don’t plan on steaming beef short ribs in the near future, there’s a possibility that I would use this cooking method for another dish. To prepare for that, I plan on improving my process as follows:
Continuous Improvement
- Invest in a steamer that can hold more food.
Judging by what I went through while preparing the beef short ribs, I think I could’ve saved on onions if I had done the following:
Lesson for Dumber Self
- Double check general terms to see if there’s a common understanding for them instead of guessing what they might mean. (In this case, it would’ve been helpful to know that a small onion weighs about four ounces, as noted in an article, What Size are Small, Medium and Large Onions and How Much Does Each Yield Chopped? from CulinaryLore’s website.)
What will you do now?
Next Step for You
- Try the Dim Sum Steamed Beef Short Ribs with Black Pepper recipe from the blog, The Woks of Life?
- Learn more about equipment to use for steaming food from the blog article, How to Steam Food: 3 Ways to Set Up a Steamer, from The Woks of Life?
- Read another post on this site? (Go to the menu at the top of the page.)