Slow-Braised Star Anise and Lemongrass Beef Ribs
Photography Sarah Tuck.
This is an incredibly popular dish and definitely one to serve as part of a feast. We served ours with lotus leaf buns. Note that this recipe is best started a day or two before serving.
Serves: 8
INGREDIENTS
⅓ cup oyster sauce
½ cup light soy sauce
1 cup Chinese Shaoxing rice wine
½ cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons five-spice powder
2 large chillis, roughly sliced
2 large thumbs ginger, finely sliced
5 cloves garlic, crushed
4 whole star anise
4 stalks lemongrass (outer leaves removed, bashed with a rolling pin)
3 kilograms beef short ribs
3 teaspoons cornflour
To serve
⅓ cup microgreens
2 spring onions, finely sliced
METHOD
Mix all of the ingredients (except the ribs and cornflour) in a large roasting dish. Cut the ribs apart and place flesh-side down in the marinade, in a single layer. Cover tightly with foil and refrigerate overnight (or for at least 6 hours). Remove the meat from the fridge half an hour before cooking.
Preheat the oven to 150°C. Roast (still covered with the foil) for 4 hours.
Remove the foil and very gently turn the ribs flesh-side up and cook a further ½ hour. Allow to cool on the bench for ½ an hour, then gently remove the ribs from the sauce and place on a baking paper-lined tray.
Strain the marinade sauce into a saucepan and refrigerate the ribs and sauce separately for 3 hours (or overnight).
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Use a spoon to lift the fat off the chilled sauce and discard it. Bring the sauce to a simmer over a gentle heat. Whisk the cornflour with 1 tablespoon of water and whisk into the sauce. Heat a further 3–4 minutes until slightly thickened and glossy. Gently put the ribs flesh-side up in a large roasting dish and cover with half of the sauce.
Cover with tinfoil and cook 45 minutes, remove the foil and cook a further 15 minutes. Serve drizzled with the remaining sauce, garnished with spring onions and microgreens. Serves 8.
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126
We start by sharing what’s on the dish team’s radar, what we’re watching, listening to and reading. Harry Butterfield puts a twist on his Nonna’s agnolotti, Malissa Fedele reminds us of the importance of fibre, and Phoebe Holden fulfils a long-held dream, sitting down with Yotam Ottolenghi. Autumn is an abundant time, we make the most with pumpkin, kūmara, cabbage, cauliflower, feijoas, apples and pears. We’re dishing up dinners for two, including a Chicken Dumpling Lasagne, alongside easy weeknight meals. We honour our mums, revisit timeless classics, and add a little baking challenge. This issue, we encourage you to slow down, to enjoy writing your shopping list, and spending time in the kitchen. Because even when life feels relentless, there’s always space to share something delicious.







