Try this delicious recipe with a Bourbon-laced sauce – it’s the perfect meal to serve up for your next BBQ and just the ticket for father’s day which is on Sunday, September 1.
The trick is to pick a good Bourbon like Ezra Books, which launched in Kentucky in 1957. Synonymous with quality, this Whiskey is aged in new, charred white oak barrels for seven years and bottled at barrel strength. Carrying sweet notes of caramel and vanilla, with hints of spice and chocolate and a warm finish, it also doubles up as a great glass to enjoy at the annual Father’s Day BBQ.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
2 kg (4 lb 6 oz) beef short ribs, cut between bones into single ribs
Apple & cabbage slaw, to serve (optional)
Spice rub
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons sea salt flakes
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, crushed
80 ml (2½ fl oz/1⁄3 cup) olive oil
Barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 long red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
80 ml (2½ fl oz/1⁄3 cup) cider vinegar
45 g (1½ oz/¼ cup softly packed) soft brown sugar
170 ml (5½ fl oz/2⁄3 cup) tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
80 ml (2½ fl oz/1⁄3 cup) pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
80 ml (2½ fl oz/1⁄3 cup) bourbon
METHOD
1 To make the spice rub, combine the ingredients in a small bowl. Coat the ribs with the rub, massaging the seasoning in well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
2 Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F).
3 Place the ribs in a baking tin in a single layer. Cook for 2–2½ hours until tender.
4 Meanwhile, to make the barbecue sauce, heat the oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium–low heat. Cook the onion, stirring occasionally for 8–10 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and chilli and cook for a further 4 minutes. Add the vinegar, sugar, passata, lemon juice, maple syrup, mustard, worcestershire sauce and bourbon. Stir to combine and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until it develops a thick pouring consistency. Season to taste and set aside to cool.
5 Preheat a barbecue grill to medium high and lightly grease with oil.
6 Brush the ribs with barbecue sauce and cook, turning regularly and basting, for 20–30 minutes until a charred and sticky crust forms. Serve with remaining barbecue sauce and, if desired, Apple & cabbage slaw.
Extract from Feed The Man Meat by Oscar Smith, published by Smith Street Books, RRP $35
