Sweet and Spicy Short Rib Tacos

 I made these tacos and Paula Deen's corney slaw and it was worth making again. You won't be disappointed. Jud said this is his favorite taco so I will definitely be making them again. The slaw recipe will follow. The tacos are from Marcela Valladolid of Foodnetwork.

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/sweet-and-spicy-short-rib-tacos

Ingredients:

4 dried ancho chilies, steemed, seeded, and ribs discarded

1 medium onion, quartered

3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 cups low-sodium beef broth

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning

6 pounds beef short ribs

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Warm corn tortillas

Mexican crema or sour cream

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

slices of avocado for garnish- optional

I used the crema recipe that I use for my fish tacos. I think if you type in fish tacos at the top of this page you will find the recipe.

Directions:

Soak the ancho chilies in boiling water until softened, about 15 minutes. Drain and discard the liquid. Transfer the softened chiles to a blender or food processor. Add the onion, garlic, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, beef broth, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Puree until smooth.  I only used about 2 pounds of beef short ribs so I divided the recipe by 3. Next time I will divide it in 1/2 because I think it could have used a little more liquid. 

Pat ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Brown the ribs in 3 batches, turning occasionally, about 7 minutes per batch. Transfer the browned ribs to a slow cooker.

Pour the sauce over the ribs (liquid should reach about 1/2 way up the sides of the meat.

Cover and cook 7 hours on high until very tender. Allow the ribs to cool slightly in the sauce.

Remove the ribs from the sauce. Discard the bones and shred the meat into a large bowl. Skim the fat from the surface and discard. Mix the sauce into the meat and season with salt and pepper, to taste.  Spoon the meat and sauce into warm corn tortillas and serve with Mexican crema and chopped fresh cilantro. My crema recipe has cilantro in it so I did not add extra. We did add some avocado on top even though the recipe doesn't call for it.

These ribs can also be cooked in a 350 degree F oven for 3 1/2 hours.

Corny Coleslaw

1/2 head purple cabbage, shredded

1/2 head green cabbage, shredded

2 carrots, peeled and shredded

I used a pre-package of cabbage and carrots

1 onion, chopped -I used green onions

1 (15.25 oz can niblet corn, drained

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon ground cumin\1 teaspoon house seasoning, recipe follows

1 lime, juiced

3/4 cup mayonnaise

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots, onions, and corn.

In a small bowl combine sugar, cumin, house seasoning, lime juice and mayonnaise. Pour over slaw mix and gently combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

*Cooks note: You may not need to use all of the dressing.  I used a large package of the slaw mix and needed all of the dressing and thought it could have used more. Next time, I will use the small package of slaw mix.