Skinnymixer’s Braised Honey Pepper Beef Short Ribs features in the Chef Specials section of the cookbook SkinnyAsia 2.

A whole rack of beef short ribs is slowly braised with ginger, garlic, soy and Chinese cooking wine until beautifully tender, then finished with a sticky honey and black pepper sauce made using that flavour-packed braising liquid.

It’s perfect for entertaining, a special occasion or whenever you feel like making something seriously impressive.

This recipe is a showstopper.

What You Will Need

For the complete quantities, see the recipe in SkinnyAsia 2.

For the beef:

Whole rack of beef short ribs
Cracked black pepper
Ground white pepper
Salt
Olive oil

For the braising liquid:

Beef or Chicken Stock Concentrate
Light soy sauce, tamari or coconut aminos
Chinese cooking wine or Dry Sherry for gluten-free
Fresh ginger
Brown or coconut sugar
Brown onion
Garlic

For the Honey Pepper Sauce:

Garlic
Fresh ginger
Brown onion
Red capsicum
Reserved braising liquid
Honey
Oyster sauce (gluten-free if required) or make your own Vegetarian Oyster Sauce
Light soy sauce, tamari or coconut aminos
Chinese cooking wine or Dry Sherry for gluten-free
Brown or coconut sugar
Rice wine vinegar
Sesame oil
Cracked black pepper
Cornflour

How to Trim a Rack of Beef Ribs

If you’ve never prepared a whole rack of beef short ribs before, this is easier than it sounds.

1. Pat the ribs dry

Use paper towel to thoroughly dry the rack. This makes it easier to handle and helps with browning later.

2. Trim the silver skin

Check the meat side of the rack for tough, silvery connective tissue.

Using a sharp knife, carefully slide the tip underneath the silver skin and trim it away without removing too much meat.

3. Remove the membrane

Turn the rack over to the bone side.

Use the handle of a teaspoon to gently work underneath an edge of the membrane until you can lift enough to grab.

Use a small piece of paper towel to grip the slippery membrane, then slowly pull it away from the bones.

If it tears, simply lift another section and continue.

Now your ribs are ready to season.

Choosing Beef Short Ribs

For this recipe, you’re looking for a whole 3-bone rack of beef short ribs weighing approximately 2–2.5 kg or 4.4–5.5 lb.

Look for ribs with a generous amount of meat over the bones and good marbling throughout.

If you’re unsure, show your butcher the recipe description and ask for a whole rack of meaty beef short ribs suitable for slow braising.

How Peppery Should I Make It?

This one is completely up to you.

The sauce uses 2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon cracked black pepper.

For a more family-friendly pepper flavour, start at the lower end.

If you LOVE a proper peppery kick, work your way towards the full tablespoon.

Remember, there’s already black and white pepper seasoning the beef itself, so you can always start conservatively and add more to the sauce after tasting.

Can I Make These in the Slow Cooker?

Absolutely.

Brown the ribs first, then transfer them to your slow cooker with the braising liquid.

Cook on LOW for approximately 8 hours, or until beautifully tender.

Reserve the required braising liquid and prepare the sauce as directed.

For the best finish, transfer the ribs and sauce to the oven at 200°C or 390°F for 10 minutes.

Alternatively, finish the ribs with the sauce in the slow cooker on HIGH for approximately 30 minutes.

Budget-Friendly Option

A whole rack of beef short ribs can be expensive.

For a more budget-friendly version, use another slow-cooking cut such as:

Chuck
Gravy beef
Oyster blade

You won’t get the dramatic whole-rib presentation, but you’ll still get tender slow-cooked beef with that delicious Honey Pepper Sauce.

Dietary & Recipe Variations

LOW CARB
Use compliant sauces and sweetener. Replace the honey and cornflour as specified in SkinnyAsia 2.

SUPER SKINNY
Use the spatchcocked roast chicken variation from the book with Chicken Stock Concentrate.

PALEO
Use the Chinese cooking wine, oyster sauce and cornflour substitutions specified in SkinnyAsia 2.

VEGETARIAN
Use the oyster mushroom and extra-firm tofu variation from SkinnyAsia 2, which also has a much shorter cooking time.

LOW FODMAP
Omit the garlic, use compliant Stock Concentrate and sauces and follow the spring onion, maple syrup and garlic-infused olive oil substitutions in the book.

HALVED / DOUBLED
The recipe can be adjusted, with sauce cooking times and batch instructions provided in SkinnyAsia 2.

What to Serve with Braised Honey Pepper Beef Ribs

Keep the sides relatively simple and let those incredible ribs do the talking.

We love them with:

Steamed jasmine rice
Cauliflower rice
Steamed or stir-fried Asian greens

Make sure there’s something on the plate to soak up all that Honey Pepper Sauce!

Get the Recipe

The complete Braised Honey Pepper Beef Ribs recipe, including oven and slow cooker methods, dietary variations and Honey Pepper Sauce, is available in SkinnyAsia 2.

From the Testing Team

Krisha G. – Did this last night with x2 spatchcooked chicken. Beautiful!
Sabene N. – Oh this was so good, I cooked it in the slow cooker, used chuck beef. Finished it off in the slow cooker as well. Came out perfect.
Betty W. – This dish is hands down my favourite out of ones tested so far. The flavour is delish even at low sodium so I reckon next time I can cut sodium even lower for hubs and still be satisfied. Did half salt in the rub. Braising – half stock concentrate, half soy, half sugar. Sauce – half honey, half oyster, half soy, half sugar. I still can’t believe the flavour bomb this was. I initially thought there wasn’t enough sauce, but on eating it was enough
Mel C.– Ooh my goodness! Everyone at work was so jealous of my dinner tonight, the smell in the staffroom had them drooling! I did a half batch, using some ribs I found in the depths of the freezer. Really delicious, will definitely make these again, and one of the kids must’ve liked them, because the serve that was meant for the freezer was eaten while I was at work.
Val W. – I chose to try the slow cooker variation which worked fabulously with the meat. It was two packets of the cheaper slow cook short ribs from Coles and the meat was literally melting in the mouth. that flavour is superb! I opted for the 1/2 tablespoon of pepper in the sauce, but I would probably opt for 3/4 next time. It was neither too sweet with the honey, nor too spicy with the pepper.
Kristi K. – Rogue pressure cooker cook. My ribs were small pieces and all different thickness. In to pressure cooker with braising ingredients and only 1 cup of beef stock which was continental beef stock powder as I don’t have any meat stock paste made at the moment. Cooked 45 minutes with full NPR. Took the meat off the bone as all a bit funny pieces. Made half batch of sauce but still cooked full time then into air fryer for 10 minutes to brown. This is really nice, because pepper wuss I only added enough to suit us.
Alisha D. – Although I didn’t use beef shorties I used back ribs instead! The flavour was delicious and we really enjoyed it
Veronica B. – the smell has filled my kitchen and has been making me hungry all day, I used pre cut short ribs from the butcher, cooked 3hrs 1st step and then followed the rest of the cook times. They turned out perfect! I love this recipe and can’t wait to cook it for family and friends! They will think I’m a super star the sauce is absolutely divine, I did only use 1/2 tbs pepper and it was really nice, but next time I’ll do the 1tbs. I didn’t discard the Braising liquid it was to nice, I think I’ll use it to make more of the sauce and keep it as a freezer stash or even a stock for soup.

Some other Thermomix Beef recipes you might love:

Want to know more about SkinnyAsia 2 cookbook?

SkinnyAsia 2 is a collection of Thermomix & Conventional cooking recipes. All of our cookbooks have a strong focus on Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Nut-free, Egg Free, Low Carb, Paleo, Vegetarian and Low FODMAP.

We cover a wide range of dietary variations in the cookbook – LC: Low Carb, GF: Gluten-free, DF: Dairy-free, LM: Low Fodmap, SS: Super Skinny, V: Vegetarian

FAQs

How do I know when my beef short ribs are cooked?

The meat should be extremely tender, pulling away from the bones and easy to pierce with a knife or fork. If the ribs are still firm after the suggested cooking time, cover them again and continue braising until tender.

Do I have to remove the membrane from beef ribs?

For this recipe, we recommend removing the tough membrane from the bone side before cooking. Use a teaspoon to lift an edge, grab it with paper towel for extra grip and gently pull it away. See our How to Trim Beef Ribs visual guide above for step-by-step help.

SkinnyAsia2: Braised Honey Pepper Beef Short Ribs

What You Will Need