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Korean Galbi, LA-Cut Short Ribs

Short ribs cut thin across the bone so they cook in minutes. The marinade uses pear, which genuinely tenderises rather than just flavouring.

Korean Galbi, LA-Cut Short Ribs
The short answer

Use LA-cut (flanken) short ribs, around 1cm thick across the bone. Marinate 6 hours in soy, grated Asian pear, garlic, sesame oil and sugar. Cook over hot coals 3 to 4 minutes a side until caramelised at the edges.

The fire

Hot even bed, no lid. These cook fast and the sugar in the marinade will catch.

Direct heat

Method

  1. Get the cut right

    Ask for flanken or LA-cut short ribs: sliced thinly across the bones so each strip has several small bone cross-sections. This is not the same as English-cut short ribs, which are thick blocks for long cooking.

  2. Rinse and pat dry

    Give the ribs a quick rinse to remove bone fragments from the saw, then dry them thoroughly. Bone dust is gritty and it is worth the two minutes.

  3. Make the marinade with real pear

    Grate the pear and mix with everything else. The pear contains enzymes that genuinely break down muscle protein, which is why traditional galbi marinade uses it. Do not substitute pear juice from a carton, which is usually pasteurised and inert.

  4. Six hours, not twenty four

    Because the pear is actively tenderising, an overly long marinade turns the surface mushy. Six hours is the sweet spot and overnight is the maximum.

  5. Hot and fast, watch the sugar

    Lift the ribs out and let excess marinade drip off. Three to four minutes a side over hot coals. The sugar caramelises and then burns quickly, so stay with them and move anything that is colouring too fast.

  6. Serve with the wraps

    Scatter with spring onion and sesame seeds. Serve with lettuce leaves, rice, ssamjang and kimchi so people can build their own wraps.

Notes worth knowing

  • These are thin, so they are cooked through rather than served pink. That is correct for the dish.
  • A tabletop Korean grill or a konro suits this format far better than a large kettle, because everyone cooks their own.
  • Reserve a little unused marinade before the meat goes in and reduce it in a pan as a dipping sauce.

Common questions

What is LA-cut?

Short ribs sawn thinly across the bones rather than between them, giving strips a centimetre thick with several bone sections. The name is thought to come from the Korean community in Los Angeles where the cut became standard.

Can I use normal short ribs?

Not for this recipe. Thick English-cut short ribs need hours of low heat. If that is what you have, smoke them instead.

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