Ingredients
4 pounds beef short ribs, cut into 2 inch lengths
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 cups brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 cups white vinegar
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup yellow mustard
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 large onion, thinly sliced
Instructions
Lightly salt and pepper all sides of the short ribs. Set aside.
Add the vegetable oil to a heavy-bottomed pot, much like a Le Creuset or Staub. (You'll want to use a pot with a tight-fitting lid.) Turn the heat to medium and allow the oil to heat up. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Fry the short ribs for 3-4 minutes on each side. You're not cooking the beef all the way though, but just browning the outside and searing the meat. Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. A good rule of thumb is to prevent the short ribs from touching each other or the sides of the pan. Place the cooked meat on a plate while the next batch is cooking.
Next, whisk together the brown sugar, vinegar, water, mustard, ketchup, and soy sauce. Stir in the onions. Set aside.
Pile the cooked short ribs back into the pot. Pour the sauce mixture over top. Move the short ribs around so that they are covered by the sauce as much as possible. Place a lid on the pot and bake for two hours, checking and gently stirring every 30 minutes.
Remove from oven. Bake for 15 more minutes with the lid off. This will thicken the sauce. Once the sauce has thickened to your liking, remove from oven and serve.