The longer you marinate these Korean sweet-and-savory ribs, the better. Look for flanken-cut short ribs in the meat department or ask your butcher to cut them for you. If you can't find perilla or shiso leaves, try using mint instead.

Source: EatingWell Magazine, May/June 2017

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Recipe Summary

active:
30 mins
total:
2 hrs 30 mins
Servings:
4
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Ingredients

Ribs
For Serving

Directions

Instructions Checklist
  • To marinate ribs: Combine pear, garlic, tamari, oil, sugar, ginger and pepper in a medium bowl, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add ribs and massage the marinade into them. Cover and refrigerate, stirring occasionally, for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day.

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  • To grill ribs: Preheat grill to high.

  • Lightly oil the grill rack. Shake any excess marinade off the ribs. Grill, without crowding, 30 to 45 seconds per side for rare, or longer if desired. Let rest on a clean cutting board for 5 minutes, then cut each in half.

  • To serve: Assemble 12 lettuce wraps with 1 perilla leaf, 1/4 cup rice, one piece of meat and 1 teaspoon Ssamjang each. Garnish with kimchi, if desired.

Tips

Tips: Perilla leaves are slightly thick and minty tasting, often used in place of lettuce to wrap up foods in Korean cooking. Shiso or even large mint leaves make a good substitute.

Look for prepared Ssamjang--a thick spicy paste typically served with Korean lettuce wraps--at Korean markets or online. To make your own: Combine 1/2 cup doenjang, 1/4 cup mirin, 3 Tbsp. gochujang, 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds, 2 tsp. toasted sesame oil and 1 clove grated garlic in a small bowl. Makes: 1 cup

The bright red, fiery chile paste gochujang is the quintessential Korean condiment.

To make ahead: Marinate ribs for up to 1 day (Step 1).

Nutrition Facts

3 BBQ lettuce wraps each
514 calories; protein 32.3g; carbohydrates 44.8g; dietary fiber 4.8g; sugars 5.8g; fat 21.7g; saturated fat 7.6g; cholesterol 79.1mg; vitamin a iu 1529.7IU; vitamin c 3.8mg; folate 31.5mcg; calcium 68.3mg; iron 5.8mg; magnesium 97.6mg; potassium 495mg; sodium 621.3mg; added sugar 4g.

2 1/2 starch, 1/2 other carbohydrate, 3 1/2 medium-fat protein, 1 fat

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