Short Rib Groundnut Soup
A decadent twist on a Ghanaian classic!
Equipment
- 1 Dutch Oven
- 1 small sauce pan
Ingredients
- 4 large bone in short ribs
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- black pepper as needed
- 3 roma tomatoes whole with stem removed
- 1 very large onion or 1 1/2 smaller onions whole with skin removed
- 2 scotch bonnet or habanero or to taste with stem removed
- 1 prekese pod optional
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 inch piece of ginger washed well and peeled
- 3 thyme sprigs
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- a generous 1/2 cup all natural peanut butter no sugar added
- water as needed
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
- Season your short ribs with salt and pepper let sit for 10 minutes.
- In your dutch oven add 1-2 tablespoons of oil and on high heat sear all sides of your short rib.
- Take your short rib out of the pot, drain the fat and wipe down the dutch oven.
- Return the short rib into the dutch oven along with all your veggies, tomato, onion, 1 hot pepper, garlic and ginger. Add your bay leaf.
- Top with water until veggies are submerged and bring to boil for about 15 minutes until veggies are soft but not mush.
- Carefully remove the veggies from the pot and place and blender and blend until very smooth. Leave your bay leaf in the broth and do not blend these!
- Return the blended veggies to the dutch oven with short rib, top with extra water is necessary so the short ribs are submerged.
- Add your thyme sprigs, 1 whole hot pepper and season with a small pinch of salt, your soup will reduce so do not over season at this point. The broth should not be overly salty.
- Cover and place in your preheated oven for 2 hours. Check on it every 30 minutes to make sure the water is not reducing too quickly and add more water if necessary. The ribs do not have to be fully submerged but there should be enough water in the pot to make sure they are not burning.
- In a small sauce pan add your peanut butter and about 2 cups of water. Over medium heat, whisk until very smooth and add more water if necessary. The mixture should be light and smooth.
- Remove your dutch oven from your oven, remove lid and mix in the peanut butter. Taste and add second whole hot pepper here if desired.
- Cook for 30 more minutes in the oven with the lid on. Check for doneness of your beef. If you beef is not fork tender at this stage, just cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes before removing lid in the next step.
- When your beef is pretty much tender, cook for an additional 30 minutes without the lid and at this point you want your soup to reduce to your desired thickness.
- Consistency is everything! You want to taste your soup, adjust for salt but also be mindful that if you continue to reduce your soup, it will get more salty as water evaporates and it condenses. This soup is meant to be broth so keep that in mind, don't be scared to add more water if you think it is too thick.
- The short rib at this point should be very tender. You do not eat the prekese, like the bay leaf and thyme sprig, it is simply removed. Do not eat the whole hot pepper, it added flavour and a bit of heat as it breaks down but it is not meant to be consumed.
- Serve your soup with rice balls or another starch of your choice or enjoy on its own.