Slow Cooker Short Ribs With Chinese Flavors Recipe (2024)

No water required if you put the scallions, honey and soy sauce in first. I cooked on high and the ribs were falling out and swimming in liquid by the end.

I made this and found it to be a little salty. I also think it could benefit from a small amount of rice vinegar to give the flavor some complexity. I plan to try it again making some adjustments. Overall not bad!

The only addition I made was to sear the short ribs before putting them in the slow cooker. I was also worried that there would not be enough liquid but by the time the ribs were done there was plenty of liquid.

Where is the liquid needed to slow-cook for all that time? There must be an ingredient missing.

While Japanese star anise can be toxic for the kidneys, Chinese star anise is safe to eat. The vast majority of star anise in the stores is Chinese. Check the label for country of origin before you buy star anise.

Made as written ... except substituted a 2.5 pound pork shoulder for the short ribs. Flavors were excellent with the pork and plenty of sauce to serve the dish over rice. Good flexible recipe that would likely work for chicken thighs, too.

Could Chinese 5 spice be substituted for the cinnamon and star anise?

Easy and scrumptious. I always add an extra piece of cinnamon and a bit more ginger, and usually add an extra star anise. OK to use short ribs with or without bones. Be sure to strain and refrigerate the liquid so as to remove the fat as suggested in step 2. I prefer to serve it with polenta instead of rice. Excellent any time of year but particularly good, somehow, when the weather report predicts snow. Any leftovers freeze well.

I made in my instant pot with perfect results. I sautéed the ribs to brown first. Then I added all the sauce ingredients, increasing the amount of ginger in it to use up what I had left. I used 2 tbsp of sugar rather than 4, and i didn’t miss the extra sweetness. Set on high for 60 min with quick release. Meat was tender and falling off bone. Added sliced carrots and sliced parsnip and added back for 5 more min on high. Reduced sauce on sauté setting. Worked like a charm and loved it!

Do I need to adjust the time if I am using boneless short ribs?
Also if I am doubling the recipe, can I just double all the spices as well?
Thanks in advance for your input!

Love this! I don't have a slow cooker, so I just brown the ribs and put them in a Dutch oven and let it braise in a 300 F oven all day. I use more peppercorn and a dash of hot sauce. The braising ingredients are excellent also with skinless chicken parts. Very good.

This is one of my go-to recipes. Never fails to please. Works well with back ribs too, or long cut meaty short ribs.

No extra liquid needed. I used same recipe w 4 lbs (six big ribs).Removed the meat and kept it warm in the oven for about 15-20min. Put the sauce in the freezer for a few mins to harden the fat. Reheat the sauce w a little cornstarch and toss in meat. Badabingbadaboom

I made this recipe and it is so good. Followed to the letter . The ribs were tender and full of flavor. This is a keeper. Who knew delicious could be easy?

Some readers didn't need to add water at all, but if you're worried about the meat being dry, add 1/2 cup water per pound of meat. I'm sure it could be adapted for a pressure cooker, but we've never tested it as such. This recipe, also from Bittman, is similar, it's for a pressure cooker, and it might be helpful to you in adapting this one: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015846-short-ribs-in-gingered-plum-s...

I just made this on a bitter cold January Sunday and it couldn't have been easier. No braising required ahead of time. Just put all the ingredients in the bottom of the slow cooker and lay the ribs on top. I followed other comments and tossed in 4 fat cloves of smashed garlic and a few splashes of rice wine vinegar. Halfway through I turned the ribs over. They turn a lovely brown and it makes a nice amount of yummy sauce. My first time using star anise, Whole Foods had it in their spice section.

I made this mostly as written except only a Tblsp of honey and two pounds of ribs, but I added 6 carrots because I like them long cooked and they add a little sweetness. I also did it in a Dutch oven in a 300 degree oven for 3 1/2 hours, had to add 3/4c of water. I really liked it but it was SALTY and I don’t usually complain about salt. Not sure why as most people haven’t complained about salt. Did the cook in the oven make the difference? I did not add any salt.

Question: if I triple short ribs, should I triple the other ingredients as well. I assume so. But thought I’d ask. Thanks

Highly recommend not eating until second day. The fat definitely needs to be removed before eating and removing after it solidifies is so easy! My short ribs were so tender. Nothing really wrong with dish just not my personal favorite.

Holy Moly, these flavours are wonderful. We subbed bok choy and blistered green beans (instead of celery) and added chopped scallions to the top.

Love this recipe! The prefect set-it-and-forget hearty cozy fall meal. To stretch the delicious, add stock so there’s lots of sauce. Then the next day I cook mushrooms in the sauce and serve on polenta.

Really lovely, deep flavors. 'Course, that's probably because I doubled or tripled the ginger, cinnamon sticks & Sichuan pepper. Subbed 5 medium shallots for scallions & added 4 minced garlic cloves, both "bloomed" in the nuker for 3 mins on high. Don't worry abt liquid - soy sauce & honey are sufficient. Definitely add an hour to freeze stock & skim off fat. Delicioso!

Made this tonight for the family. Didn't have star anise or Sichuan peppercorns, subbed in 5-spice powder for the star anise and black peppercorns and coriander for the Sichuan peppercorns. Followed a couple of suggestions to add in a splash of rice vinegar and the juice of an orange. Turned out lovely. Not too sweet, not to salty. I did take about 1/3 of the seasonings and rubbed them on the meaty side of the ribs before putting them in the cooker. 5.5 hours on high and we were ready to feast!

I made this in a pressure cooker instead - 50 minutes and they were falling off the bone. However, I thought it was lacking a little something - maybe vinegar? I didn't get as much zip from my fancy new sichuan peppercorns as I expected.

Disappointing, especially since short ribs are expensive these days. Make sure you are a big fan of star anise; the flavor in a slow cooker is extremely strong.

Seared the short ribs and did in a dutch oven. Came out wonderfully!

I mean these are simply superb. Didn’t have star anise. Would’ve added if I did. Added a little water because I was nervous about moistness but I frankly probably didn’t need it. Served it on a bed of coconut polenta, with Japanese seven spiced carrots and garlicky seared bok choy on top. Don’t forget to scoop up the liquid from the pot and pour it on top. Yum.

has anyone done this in an Instant Pot? How long would I pressure cook it for?

Disappointing, could have been better. This is the second slow cooker recipe I’ve tried in 2 days, each said don’t add water or braising liquid, that’s wrong. Braising liquid captures flavors and also imparts them. No liquid, not much flavor. Don’t rely on the meat to render liquid, that’s not the point. Without braising liquid all you have is a slow roast and under-flavored meat.

My local grocery store didn't have short ribs, so I tried this with pork loin ribs and held my breath. It came out so good! I served it with a side of sautéed bok choy, which I thought was a great pairing.