Red-Cooked Short Ribs

Red cooking refers to a Chinese technique of braising meat in a soy sauce and sherry mixture. The "red" comes from the color soy sauce acquires after long cooking. Steamed rice and green onions are classic accompaniments.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup rice, 1 rib piece, 1/3 cup mushroom mixture, and 2 tablespoons onions)

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 2  pounds  boneless beef short ribs, trimmed and cut into 8 equal pieces
• 2  tablespoons  minced peeled fresh ginger
• 1  tablespoon  grated orange rind
• 4  garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2  cup  dry sherry
• 2  cups  sliced shiitake mushroom caps (about 3 1/2 ounces)
• 3/4  cup  fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
• 6  tablespoons  low-sodium soy sauce
• 1  tablespoon  honey
• 1/4  teaspoon  crushed red pepper
• 1  (8-ounce) can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
• 1  (4-inch) cinnamon stick
• 1  (8-ounce) can diced water chestnuts, drained
• 4  cups  hot cooked short-grain rice
• 1  cup  (1-inch) slices green onions

Preparation

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add half of beef to pan; cook 3 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove beef from pan. Repeat procedure with cooking spray and remaining beef.

Add ginger, rind, and garlic to pan; sauté 30 seconds or until fragrant. Stir in sherry, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add mushrooms; cook 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add beef, broth, and next 5 ingredients (through cinnamon); bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 1/2 hours or until beef is very tender. Stir in water chestnuts; cook for 5 minutes. Discard cinnamon. Serve over rice; sprinkle with onions.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

331 (26% from fat)

Fat:

9.4g (sat 3.9g,mono 4g,poly 0.4g)

Protein:

19.8g

Carbohydrate:

40.1g

Fiber:

2.7g

Cholesterol:

46mg

Iron:

3.8mg

Sodium:

370mg

Calcium:

26mg