+ A
A -
NYT Syndicate
When the Obamas visited Red Rooster Harlem in 2011 for a fundraising dinner, chef Marcus Samuelsson served them braised short ribs, lobster salad and his cornbread with honey butter. And to the crowds who gathered outside to see the nation's first African-American president, he passed out coffee and doughnuts. He fed the president, and he fed the neighbourhood.
Samuelsson was born in Ethiopia and raised in Sweden, but he has made Harlem his home, and it's clear in The Red Rooster Cookbook: The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem that he has found magic there. The restaurant, which opened in 2010, was a meditation on modern Harlem, an embrace of its past and a vision for its future ” vibrantly diverse, effortlessly cool.
The book follows suit, absorbing the neighbourhood's multiple influences. Southern food is well represented, like that cornbread: baked in a loaf pan and as moist as pudding. His chicken-fat challah with cracklings (a more Southern way of saying schmaltz and gribenes) is a brilliant innovation, a tender, smoky, flavour-suffused Jewish version of Italian lard bread ” because Harlem was Jewish (and Italian), too.
And Obama's short ribs, as they're called here, are easy to make and lighter than you'd think, with a fruity and savoury sauce; plum sauce and soy sauce go into the pot. They are appealing and attainable, as are so many of the other recipes. But the book's real charm lies in what it captures: the spirit of this particular place.
Obama's Short Ribs
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: About 3 hours
Ingredients
8 (6-ounce) English-cut short ribs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, trimmed and chopped
2 celery ribs, trimmed and chopped
1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed, smashed and minced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and minced
3 cups beef or chicken broth
1/2 cup plum sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
2 bay leaves
Freshly grated horseradish, for serving (optional)
Method
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Pat the meat dry with paper towels and season all over with salt and pepper.
2. Heat grapeseed oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When oil shimmers, add short ribs and brown on all sides, about 2 minutes per side; transfer to a plate.
3. Add onion, carrot, celery, lemongrass, garlic and ginger to the pot. Season with salt and cook, stirring often, until onion softens, about 5 minutes. Stir to dissolve any of the brown bits that may still be on the bottom of the pot. Add broth, plum sauce, soy sauce, thyme, parsley and bay leaves and bring to a simmer.
4. Return short ribs to the pot, along with any of the juices, cover and slide pot into oven. Braise until meat is fork-tender, about 2 hours.
5. Transfer meat to a plate. Strain the braising liquid into a fat separator. If you don't have a fat separator, use a ladle to skim the fat off the top of the braising liquid; then strain through a fine mesh sieve.
6. Discard bay leaves and thyme stems and transfer vegetables to a food processor using a fine mesh strainer. Process vegetables until smooth, then add 1 1/2 cups of the defatted braising liquid to the processor and pulse to combine.
7. Return sauce to the Dutch oven and season to taste with salt and pepper. Return short ribs to the pot and turn to coat in the sauce; set aside until you're ready to serve.
8. Reheat short ribs in the sauce. Divide short ribs between four shallow bowls and top each with a spoonful of sauce. Put the rest of the sauce in a bowl for passing at the table, along with a bowl of horseradish, if you would like.
