Red Chile Short Rib Tacos Recipes

SWEET AND SPICY SHORT RIB TACOS

Steps:

• Soak the ancho chiles in boiling water until softened, about 15 minutes. Drain and discard the liquid. Transfer the softened chiles to a blender. Add the onion, garlic, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, beef broth, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Puree until smooth.
• Pat ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Brown the ribs in 3 batches, turning occasionally, about 7 minutes per batch. Transfer the browned ribs to a slow cooker.
• Pour the sauce over the ribs (liquid should reach about halfway up sides of meat),
• cover and cook for 7 hours on high until very tender. Allow the ribs to cool slightly in the sauce.
• Remove the ribs from the sauce. Discard the bones and shred the meat into a large bowl. Skim the fat from the surface and discard. Mix the sauce into the meat and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Spoon the meat and sauce into warm corn tortillas and serve with Mexican crema and chopped fresh cilantro.

SHORT RIB TACOS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. In an ovenproof Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper; brown in batches. Remove with tongs., Reduce heat to medium. Add carrots and onion to drippings; cook, stirring frequently, until starting to brown, 3-5 minutes. Add cocoa; toast, stirring frequently, until aromatic, 1-2 minutes. Add tomato sauce and beer, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan. Bring to a boil; simmer 2-3 minutes. , Return ribs to pan; add water, if necessary, to cover. Bake, covered, until meat is tender, 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Remove from oven; drain, reserving juices. When cool enough to handle, remove ribs from pan and remove meat from bones; discard bones. Shred meat with 2 forks. Skim fat from reserved juices. Return meat and juices to Dutch oven; heat through. Serve on tortillas with pico de gallo and queso fresco.

BEEF SHORT RIBS WITH RED CHILI SAUCE

Steps:

• Cut 1 head of garlic crosswise in half. Place in large pot with ribs, 3 quarts water, and quartered onion. Bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until meat is cooked through, about 50 minutes. Strain, reserving 6 cups meat broth (discard onions and garlic). Reserve ribs.
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Wrap remaining head of garlic tightly in foil and place directly on oven rack. Place tomatoes and sliced onion on rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast garlic, tomatoes, and onion until tender, about 1 hour. Transfer tomatoes and onion to processor. Using fingers, squeeze garlic from papery skin into processor. Blend until smooth. Set tomato sauce aside.
• Place guajillo and ancho chilies in medium bowl. Add 4 cups reserved meat broth. Let stand 30 minutes. Transfer mixture to processor and blend until smooth. Strain chili sauce into medium bowl, pressing on solids in strainer with rubber spatula to extract as much liquid as possible.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add chili sauce; simmer 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce, cumin, oregano, and cloves. Simmer 5 minutes. Add ribs, vinegar, and remaining 2 cups meat broth. Bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered until sauce is thick, about 50 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium-high heat until hot.) Serve ribs with sauce.
• Available at Latin American markets and some supermarkets.

SHREDDED RED-CHILE MEAT

Steps:

• In a large pot or Dutch oven, combine all the ingredients except the cayenne. Add water to cover, and bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that comes to the surface. Partly cover, and adjust the heat so that the mixture bubbles steadily; cook until the meat is very tender, 1 to 2 hours
• Transfer the meat to a bowl, and let it cool, then shred it with your fingers. Discard the bay leaves, and transfer the garlic, onion and chiles to a blender along with a splash of the cooking liquid. Blend until smooth. Add the sauce to the meat, and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding a little cayenne if you want it spicier; you may want to overseason the meat slightly if you're using it as a filling. Use, or store in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to a few months.

RED-COOKED BEEF SHORT RIBS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Prepare the ribs: Heat oil in a large lidded Dutch oven over medium-high. Working in batches, sear short ribs on all sides until deeply and evenly browned, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer browned short ribs to a large plate, and continue with remaining ribs.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of remaining fat, leaving the good browned bits behind. Reduce heat to medium. Add ginger, cinnamon, chiles, orange peel, Sichuan peppercorns, black peppercorns and star anise, and stir to get them coated in the fat. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the ginger has started to soften.
• Add the rice wine, soy sauces, sugar and molasses, then the chicken stock, and stir to combine. Using tongs, return short ribs to the pot, along with any juices that have accumulated, nestling them into the braising liquid bone-side up, so the meat is submerged. Bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer to oven.
• Cook, undisturbed, until short ribs are meltingly tender and falling off the bone (you should be able to shred the meat with a fork), 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
• Using tongs, remove the ribs from the pot and put them on a warm platter. Wrap tightly with aluminum foil and a couple of dish towels to keep them warm while you make the sauce.
• Prepare the sauce: Strain 3 cups of the braising liquid from the Dutch oven into another pot, discarding remaining braising liquid and solids. Set it over medium-high heat, and add the onions, tomato paste, doubanjiang, soy sauce, rice wine, ginger, garlic and five-spice powder; stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then cook, undisturbed, for 15 minutes, until reduced and thickened.
• Strain the sauce through a colander back into the Dutch oven you used to cook the ribs, and place the pot over medium-high heat. Make a slurry of the cornstarch and 3 tablespoons water, then whisk it into the sauce to thicken, 1 to 2 minutes. You're looking for something thick and glossy, like a demi-glace.
• Unwrap the ribs, daub them liberally with the sauce and serve with Bibb lettuce leaves, Thai basil, cilantro, scallions, cucumbers, rice and the remaining sauce.

NEW MEXICO RED CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Coat the bottom of a heavy saucepan with oil; add chile pods. Toast over medium heat until aromatic, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in onion and garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add enough chicken stock to allow pods to float; simmer until they develop the texture of wet leather, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Fill blender halfway with chile-stock mixture. Cover and hold lid down with a potholder; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Pour into a bowl; repeat with remaining mixture. Strain sauce through a fine mesh strainer into a saucepan over medium heat. Discard solids.
• Stir cumin, coriander, and oregano into the saucepan; add honey. Cook until sauce is thick and evenly coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes.

RED CHILE PASTE

Steps:

• Make a slit in each of the ancho chiles and New Mexico chiles with a sharp knife, and remove the seeds and stem. Place the chiles in a large saucepan, and add the chicken stock, onion, and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium, and simmer until the chiles have softened, about 15 minutes.
• Pour the chile mixture into a blender, filling the pitcher no more than halfway full. Hold down the lid of the blender with a folded kitchen towel, and carefully start the blender, using a few quick pulses to get the mixture moving before leaving it on to puree. Puree in batches until smooth and pour into a clean pot. Alternately, you can use a stick blender and puree the chile mixture right in the cooking pot.