Buffalo Trace barbecued beef short ribs

Serves 4

I'm glad that the fellow who took on my old flat in Shoreditch still gives me inspiration for this column. Stuart Ekins, of Inspirit Brands, often sends me suspicious-looking bottles to play around with, one of these being Buffalo Trace Kentucky bourbon. Just as a little taster, he also sent through a bottle of Buffalo Trace marinade, and, rather like the Trotter Gear, this seemed like an appropriate moment to put it to good use.

Now, as the actual marinade itself is not that readily available, I'm giving you the recipe here; the bourbon can be found at www.specialitydrinks.com as well as Waitrose, Harvey Nichols and specialist drinks stores.

Barbecue marinades are very much a question of trial and error, and they can be made to your personal taste. This fine bourbon certainly tempted my taste buds, both in and out of the marinade.

Beef short ribs, often referred to as Jacob's ladder in the US, are literally the bones and meat above a rib roast. The meat has that delicious taste of a rib of beef with the right amount of fat that keeps it moist during long cooking.

1-1.5kg beef short ribs, cut to about 12-14cm

500ml Buffalo Trace marinade, or below:

For the marinade

100ml Buffalo Trace Kentucky bourbon
250ml apple juice
5tbsp soy sauce
The juice of 2 limes
6tbsp clear honey
3tbsp Worcestershire sauce
A few drops of Tabasco
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

Mix all of the ingredients together for the marinade and mix with the ribs in a non-reactive container, such as a plastic container or a glass or stainless steel bowl. Cover and store in the fridge for 24 hours.

Pre-heat the oven to 160C/gas mark 3. Place the ribs and marinade in a roasting tray with a cup of water (about 250ml) and cook for about 2 hours, basting and turning every so often until the ribs are tender. If the ribs are colouring too much, cover with foil. Take to the bonfire in a covered plastic container or tiffin box, and serve with coleslaw.