Soy Marinated Filipino Short Ribs

Soaked in a sweet soy marinade, these Filipino-style barbecue ribs are juicy, tender, and perfect when grilled over charcoal or pan-fried!

Filipino barbecues were always one of the highlights of my summers.

We’d marinate the beef usually a night before, so that by the time we were ready to fire up the grill next day, the marinade had already done its job in flavoring the meat throughout.

You use this recipe for camping trips, barbecue parties, or even potlucks. It’s a hit every time, and people would always come back for seconds!

Making the marinade is incredibly simple, and it uses fairly standard ingredients that you may already have lying around in your fridge or pantry.

Note that if you really want to go full-out authentic with this Filipino marinade, I’d suggest using Filipino soy sauce and not substituting out the banana ketchup!

Ingredients and Substitutes

Short ribs: You’ll need these to be cut flanken-style (lengthwise across the bone), which makes the beef thin and great for grilling. If they’re not already in your local supermarket, you can typically find them in most Asian or Korean grocery stores as well.

Soy sauce: For a true Filipino barbecue, I’d highly suggest going for a Filipino brand of soy sauce (Datu Puti, Marca Piña, and Silver Swan are all great). Otherwise, any standard soy sauce brand should work fine for this recipe.

Briefly, Filipino soy sauce is a tad saltier and has a more liquid consistency compared to other Asian soy sauces. It’s similar to dark soy sauce in the way that it’s able to color your barbecue in a darker/caramel hue!

Banana ketchup: Contrary to popular belief, banana ketchup does not, in fact, taste like bananas. Flavor-wise, I find it has less tang and is slightly sweeter in comparison to the standard Western ketchup. The banana ketchup I grew up on was Jufran, but any other brand of Ketchup also works.

• Substitutes: You can also use standard Western ketchup, if you prefer.

Brown sugar: Brown sugar will give our marinade a deep, molasses taste, while also balancing out all the salty and savory flavors of the sauce.

• Substitutes: Other sweeteners such as white sugar, honey, or coconut sugar may also work.

Garlic, black pepper: Go for fresh garlic and freshly-ground black pepper if you can for the greatest amount of flavor.

Calamansi juice: Calamansi is a Philippine citrus, similar to a taste that combines lemon, lime, and a tangerine. Some Asian supermarkets will either sell the calamansi fresh or frozen in plastic bags.

• Substitutes: Equal parts lemon or lime can work.

Instructions

Combine all the marinating ingredients together in a bowl. Whisk until smooth.

Place the raw short ribs in a sealable bag and coat completely with the marinade. Let sit overnight or for at least one hour.

Once marinated, grill or pan fry the ribs to your desired doneness.

Top with green onions. Serve warm, enjoy!

Cooking Tips

Customize your marinade: Feel free to add other ingredients into your marinade to further make your barbecue complex. Other additions you can mix in include:

• Spice (e.g., chili oil, chili crisp, chopped Thai chilies or Jalapeños)
• Aromatics (e.g., ginger, lemongrass, shallots)
• Sauces (e.g., Worcestershire sauce, sesame or peanut butter, hoisin sauce)

Let marinate overnight: For maximum flavor, let the beef marinate in the sauce overnight. This not only allows the flavors to fully permeate the fibres of the meat, but the slight acidity of the marinade will also help in tenderizing the beef for the next day.

Don’t let the beef sit too long in the marinade, however (e.g., greater than 2-3 days) as this can start breaking down the meat fibres, causing the texture to become mushy.

Cook to your desired doneness: You can adjust the cooking times accordingly to your preferred level of doneness. Since these short ribs are cut thin, they won’t take as long to cook as a steak, for example. Cooking over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes on each side leaned towards the rare/medium-rare temperature, for reference.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

How do I store leftovers?

Leftover cooked short ribs can be refrigerated and sealed in an airtight container for up to 4 days. To reheat, simply place the ribs in the microwave or gently pan-fry/grill until the beef is fully warmed-through.

Leftover marinated beef (still raw) can be kept for up to 2 days. I wouldn’t recommend going for longer as the marinade can start breaking down the meat, potentially making it mushy.

What can I serve this with?

Most Filipino-style barbecues are typically served with a hefty bowl of rice and other side dishes including, but not limited to:

• Atchara (Filipino pickled papaya)
• Filipino Mango Salad
• Cucumber Kimchi
• Roasted Asian Brussels Sprouts