Everybody loves taco night! This lip-smacking recipe from Williams-Sonoma is a mash-up of Asian and Latin American cuisines; a fresh, crunchy slaw is paired with tender short ribs and a slightly spicy sauce. Don’t be intimidated by the varied list of ingredients – once you marinate the short ribs overnight, the slaw comes together in no time!
Serves 6
Ingredients
For the short ribs:
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup sake or water
- 3 tbsp dark sesame oil
- 6 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
- 1 white onion, cut into large chunks
- 1 ripe pear, cored and shredded
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 750 g boneless beef short ribs, thinly sliced
For the dressing:
- 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh coriander leaves
- 3 green onions
- Juice of 2 limes
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
For the slaw:
- 2 cups shredded cos lettuce
- 2 cups shredded red cabbage
- 4 radishes, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup fresh coriander, tough stems removed
- 2 green onions, white and tender green parts only
For the sriracha cream:
- 1 tsp sriracha
- 3 tbsp sour cream
12-to-14 flour or corn tortillas, warmed
Method
To make the marinade, in a large bowl, stir together the soy sauce, sake (or water), sesame oil, sugar, ginger, garlic, sesame seeds, white onion, pear and 1 tsp each of salt and pepper.
Add the beef to the bowl and toss to coat thoroughly. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
When you are ready to cook, remove the beef from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the barbecue or a grill pan on high.
While the barbecue is heating, make the dressing for the slaw. In a food processor, combine the coriander, green onions, lime juice, rice vinegar, honey and salt. With the machine running, drizzle in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream and process until well blended. Set aside.
Coat the barbecue grate lightly with cooking spray. Using tongs, arrange the beef on the grate directly over the heat and cook, turning once, until nicely grill-marked and cooked to the desired doneness, about 2 minutes per side for medium-rare. Using the tongs, transfer the white onion from the bowl to the grate directly over the heat and cook for about 5 minutes per side, until soft. Transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm. (Discard the marinade.)
To make the slaw, in a large bowl, toss together the lettuce, cabbage, radishes and coriander. Chop the green onions coarsely and toss them into the bowl. Add the dressing to the slaw to taste; toss to combine, tasting as you go.
In a separate small bowl, make the sriracha cream by stirring together the sriracha and sour cream. Stir half of the sriracha cream into the slaw.
To assemble, fill the tortillas with the beef and onion, and top with a few big pinches of the slaw. Serve immediately. Pass the extra sriracha cream at the table for drizzling.
–Adapted from Williams-Sonoma’s Taco Night, by Kate McMillan.
