Smoked Beef Short Ribs

Get ready for an insane feast by the low 'n' slow expert Matt Cross (@crossfirecooking). Coffee rubbed smoked beef ribs with chipotle & molasses BBQ sauce, quick pickled limes and tortillas. And the best part? It's all cooked in Dome.

Method (for the sauce):

Step 1:

In a saucepan pour in one tbsp of neutral cooking oil.

Step 2:

Dice half the onion finely and puree the garlic with a knife.

Step 3:

Sweat the onion in the pan over a low heat until soft and translucent.

Step 4:

Add the garlic and cook for a further minute or so.

Step 5:

Add the cumin, paprika & chili paste and cook out for a few minutes being careful not to burn the spices, add more oil if needed.

Step 6:

Now pour in the ketchup and the rest of the ingredients and stir well until combined.

Step 7:

Cook until the sugar had dissolved, and all the ingredients are combined. Then run the sauce through a sieve to make it smooth.

Setting up your Dome for the cook :

Step 1:

Set your Dome up for low and slow. Place a layer of charcoal in the fire basket and place one fire lighter in the center. Ignite the lighter and return the tray to its position in the Dome. Open the side vent to its most open position.

Step 2:

Turn on the Dome oven thermometer and connect your two wired probes, leave the door off the Dome until the charcoal has begun to catch.

Step 3:

Once the charcoal has caught, replace the door to its position and close the door vents leaving a gap of around 2- 3 mm.

Step 4:

Close the side vent to just over ¾ of the way closed. Keep an eye on the oven’s temperature. Once the Dome has reached a temperature of 100°C begin to close the side vent up, leaving a gap of 1cm.

The cook:

Step 1:

Remove your beef ribs from the fridge at least one hour before cooking. Place your ribs onto a chopping board or covered surface. Add a tablespoon of American mustard onto the surface of the meat and rub all over, this will help the seasoning adhere to the meat.

Step 2:

Season the meat equally all over with the coffee rub from a height. Season well as it’s a large piece of meat and can take the extra seasoning. This will also help to create a bark like texture over the surface of the meat during the cook.

Step 3:

Place the seasoned ribs onto a wire rack on top of a tray, pour boiling water into the tray underneath the ribs as this will help create moisture in the chamber during the cook. Insert one of the Dome's wired probes in the center of the thickest part of the meat. Place the other probe on top of the meat (this will give you an accurate reading of the oven temp at your foods heigh).

Step 4:

Remove the door from the dome and place the tray with the ribs into the oven. Place 1 – 2 small chunks of oak wood onto the coals. Replace the oven door. It will take a little while for the Dome to recover temperature once it does, maintain temperature. If the Dome’s temperature begins to drop, simply open the side vent a little, do not open it too much as it is not an instant fix and will take time for the temperature to rise. If the oven’s temperature rises too much, close the vent back to its original position.

Step 5:

After 2 hours, check the ribs for colour and using the spray bottle spray the meat with the vinegar water mixture. Be quick doing this as we do not want to lose too much heat form the chamber. Once the beef ribs achieve an internal temperature of 75°C carefully remove the tray from the Dome and wrap tightly in doubled layered aluminum foil. Re-insert the probes through the foil and return the tray to the oven. Continue to maintain temperature until the ribs reach an internal temperature of 94°C.

Step 6:

Remove from the Dome and carefully tightly wrap the beef ribs in clingfilm and leave to rest for 30 minutes.

Step 7:

While the ribs are resting, build the fire up in the Dome until a temperature of 350°C is achieved. Carefully toast your tortillas on the stone floor and remove with tongs once cooked.

Step 8:

Carefully take your beef ribs and remove from the bone, slice into thin pieces. Place into a toasted tortilla, add a dash of chipotle BBQ sauce. Top with diced raw onion, the pickled red onion and the crispy shallots. Enjoy!