Soup Recipe

Brown and blanch ribs

Place short ribs in a medium stockpot and cover with cold water. Bring to a gentle boil over high heat. Once boiling, skim and discard scum that rises to the surface for 3–5 minutes to clarify the broth.

After initial skimming, drain ribs and discard the poaching liquid. Rinse the pot and return ribs to the pot (this reduces cloudiness) and fill with 10 cups fresh cold water.

Add quartered onion, halved carrot, celery halves, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low so the surface hardly moves. Simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours until meat is tender and flavor is extracted. Occasionally skim any foam or excess fat from the surface.

After simmering, carefully remove ribs and set aside to cool enough to handle. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot to remove solids and peppercorns. Return strained broth to low heat and season with 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, tasting and adjusting later if needed.

When ribs are cool, pick meat from the bones and finely shred about 1/2 cup to use in the finished soup. Reserve any extra meat for another use.

Bring about 4 cups of the strained rib broth to a gentle simmer in a clean saucepan over medium heat (use less broth if you want a smaller side portion; recipe yields multiple small bowls).

Add sliced mushrooms to the simmering broth and cook 3–4 minutes until just tender.

Stir in minced garlic and julienned ginger and cook 30–45 seconds until fragrant, taking care not to brown the aromatics.

Add soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil to the broth. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt or soy sauce if needed. Add freshly ground black pepper.

Stir in the shredded rib meat to warm through for 1–2 minutes.

Ladle the hot soup into small bowls. Garnish each bowl with sliced scallions, chopped parsley or cilantro if using, and a light sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately while hot.