Mother-in-Law Kalbi

I'm lucky that I get along with my mother-in-law. Politically, we are near, we both loathe Walmart, and we generally don't vote for the red team, unless by red team you mean a bottle red wine. She's sharp as a whip, and I wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of that whip.

So when she e-mailed me, "That's NOT Kalbi!!!", about my blog post a few weeks ago, I had to let my first three reactions go, and then have a talk with my husband.

"Those are the cross cut short ribs I always buy, and what is served in all the Korean restaurants here. What does she mean I have the wrong cut?"

Turns out instead of a thin cross cut of the beef ribs, her Kalbi recipe, and probably more authentic than what I get on Highway 99, has the ribs cut across only once, in half, then scored along the top. Same basic marinade, only these are the big, meaty ribs, not the thin slices of them.

Lucky for me, we have a band saw in the walk-in refrigerator (we cut our own dog bones). So honey goes to the shop and cuts me up some beef ribs just like his momma used to buy.

These meatier bones need more time marinating and some indirect time in the smoker than the thin cut short ribs.

The Marinade
Make the same marinade as the other Kalbi ribs I did a few weeks ago, but instead of overnight, marinate meat for 1-2 full days.

Combination Cooking
Make a hot hot charcoal fire and sear ribs. Keep on turning for about 5 minutes. Set aside while you make an indirect, low fire.

I used my Weber bullet smoker and used the bottom part first as a grill, then put it back together for smoke, added wood, the water pan and lowered the temperature with the vents to about 200 degrees.

Smoke ribs for about 45 minutes to an hour to tender up. This isn't slow and low barbecue - you want the ribs to stay on the rarer side, like steak, but giving them some low heat will break down some of the tough connective tissue.

The Glaze
Make a glaze and brush on liberally for the last 20 minutes of cooking time.

Heat 1 cup chicken stock and whisk in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Add 1 cup white sugar, 1 cup soy sauce and 1 tablespoon sesame oil. Boil down until it thickens. Makes enough for about 6 racks of beef short ribs (12 Kalbi pieces).

Serve with white rice and grilled zucchini or a fresh cucumber salad and dig in.

Back to some grillin': Kalbi Short Ribs

OK, break's over. Let's get back to some food on this barbecue blog. You may have noticed I haven't posted a recipe for awhile. June and July are our busiest catering months at Smokin' Pete's BBQ, and I'm lucky to have two matching clean socks, let alone cook something worth photographing at home.

This post ain't barbecue, it's grillin', but it sure is tasty. Korean-style short ribs are one of the quickest meals you can throw on a grill. Marinate them in the morning, throw on some rice when you get home, and sizzle these ribs on a hot hot grill.

I usually use a charcoal grill, but this time I tried out my Char-broil Quantum infrared grill. I wanted to see if the infrared grill could really get hot enough for this recipe, because I find regular gas grills don't.

Kalbi Marinade

Make a simple marinade of equal parts soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and brown sugar. Add chopped fresh ginger. Green onion is nice if you have it (I didn't this time). Chili flakes and black pepper will add some heat (I made mine mild for the kids, but I normally like a little kick of chili). Submerge ribs in marinade for 4-8 hours before grilling. Shake off excess marinade before you put them on the heat.

The Grill
Be it gas or charcoal, you want a hot fire for these babies. They are going to cook fast, and you want to sear the outside, pull them off rare on the inside, and let them finish to medium rare while they rest. Leave some indirect space on your grill in case things get too hot or flare up. I rarely have flare-ups, but I once nearly started a back yard fire while grilling short ribs.

On the infrared grill, I prepped the grill grates with a swipe of an oiled rag before turning it on. I find my infrared needs more seasoning than a standard gas grill. I then preheated both burners on high for a full 15 minutes with the lid down.

The Meat
Throw down the ribs for a quick 1-2 minutes per side. As soon as they are marked, basically it is time to turn or take them off.

Green on the grill
While they rest, grill some bok choy you have marinated in canola oil, rice wine vinegar, and a touch of soy sauce. Grill the bok choy on medium heat or indirectly, so the leaves steam without burning. Serve with jasmine rice.

I thought the infrared grill did better than a standard gas grill. While they weren't as reddish pink in the middle as I'm used to, the ribs were as tender as the rarer ribs I get on charcoal. I missed the layer of charcoal flavor to the meat, but that's the trade off when you are going for the ease of gas.