Try tender, juicy short ribs with beans

Get a taste of Chicago cuisine with this recipe from chef Carol Wallack

By Phil Lempert Food editor

TODAY

updated 11/11/2008 5:21:57 PM ET

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What better time to continue sampling the culinary delights of Chicago, President-elect Barack Obama’s hometown, than on the heels of his landslide victory?

As well as sampling these gastronomic offerings, if you happen to be in Chicago at this time you can also get tickets to see what is hailed as America’s best opera: “Porgy and Bess,” with music by George Gershwin. The opera was conceived as an American folk opera and debuted in 1935 with an entire cast of classically trained African-American singers portraying life on Catfish Row in Charleston, S.C., in the 1920s — based on the novel “Porgy,” by Dubose Heyward and his wife Dorothy. At the time of its debut, the opera was seen as radical, both for its cast and also for the inclusion of jazz and blues in the score — and was to be Gershwin’s only opera.

This week’s tasty recipe for short ribs with adzuki beans and jasmine rice was "stolen" from Carol Wallack, chef and owner of Sola — so named because Wallack loves the sun and the surf. Opening Sola in the midst of a chilly Chicago winter, she hoped to impart the sense of warmth, friendliness and fun that she gleans from her favorite beaches.

About the chef: A "surfer girl from California," Wallack found her calling while at the beach. "I met a girl who was a chef for the original Spago," she recalls. "Two weeks later, I found myself working for her." Carol's love of food led to her role as sous chef at Camelions restaurant in Los Angeles and then as a private chef for the Hollywood set, including James Garner and Jack Nicholson. She left Los Angeles for Chicago to open the acclaimed restaurant Deleece, which she ran and operated for years before opening Sola. While Chicago's Lincoln Avenue may not be on the beach, Wallack's oasis Sola features fresh, bold flavors of the sea with Hawaiian and Asian influences in a classic contemporary setting — the kind of restaurant she would want to dine in herself.

Sola restaurant
3868 N. Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60613
773-327-3868
www.sola-restaurant.com

Short ribs with adzuki beans and jasmine rice is served at Sola for $26.

Recipe: Short ribs with adzuki beans and jasmine rice (on this page)

Want to nominate your favorite restaurant dish for a “Steal This Recipe” feature? Just e-mail phil@supermarketguru.com with the name of the restaurant, city and state, and the dish you would like to have re-created. Want to know more about Phil and food? Visit his Web site at www.supermarketguru.com.

Recipe: Short ribs with adzuki beans and jasmine rice

Carol Wallack, Sola restaurant

Ingredients

For short ribs:
Boneless beef short ribs, 8 by 2 1/2 inches
Butcher’s twine
1/2 cup sake
1 cup soy
2 cloves garlic
1 lemongrass stalk, chopped, white part only
1 inch of ginger root, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1 sweet Maui onion, chopped
1 teaspoon Sambal Oelek (an Indonesian-inspired chili sauce, available in the specialty section of your supermarket or at Asian markets)
1/4 cup orange juice, fresh squeezed
1/2 cup Hoisin (a Chinese dipping sauce, available in the specialty section of your supermarket or at Asian markets)
2 tablespoons lime juice
Vegetable oil, for frying
For beans:
1 cup adzuki beans
4 cups chicken stock
2 large celery ribs, diced
2 large carrots, diced
1 large onion, diced
1 sprig thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper
Vegetable oil
For rice:
1 cup jasmine rice
2 cups water
1 can coconut milk
1 inch piece of ginger, diced
1 stalk lemongrass, smashed and diced
Salt and pepper
For garnish:
1/4 cup whole mint leaves
1/4 cup whole cilantro leaves
Lime sections

Preparation

For ribs:
In a bowl, combine all ingredients, except the sake and the ribs. Set aside.

Roll each short rib lengthwise into a ball and tie with butcher’s twine. Lightly flour and season them. Use very little, if any, salt when seasoning since there is soy in the braising liquid.

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, add the short ribs and brown on all sides. Once they are browned, deglaze the pot with the sake.

Add the combined ingredients in the bowl. Cover and braise for 3-4 hours in 300-degree oven. They should feel tender to the touch. When removed from the oven, let rest in braising liquid for 30 minutes. Ladle the fat off the top of the braising liquid and reduce the liquid for the sauce on the plate.

For beans:
Put 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a pot. Add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic and lightly sauté. Add the beans, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Add chicken stock and cook until beans are tender, over low heat.

Remove the large chunks of diced onions, carrots, celery. In addition, remove the thyme and bay leaf before service.

Beans may be made in advance and reheated with a little chicken stock just before serving.

For rice:
Put the rice, ginger, lemongrass, salt and pepper, water and coconut milk in a pot. Cook until the rice is done.

Remove the large chunks of ginger and lemongrass before service.