Jacob’s Ladder: the cut
Cooked long and slow for a jaw-dropping dinner
Also known as the short-rib, the Jacob’s Ladder comes from the flank of the fore-quarter on the beef carcass. This affordable cut was once the butcher’s best kept secret because of its incredibly tender, melt-in-your-mouth quality. However, over the last few years its eating quality has been revered by more and more as the less-known beef cuts have seen a renaissance again.
Jacob’s Ladder boasts plenty of marbling; this provides good flavour and makes it ideal for marinating, smoking and popping onto a barbecue.
If you are looking for a dazzling dinner party piece, follow this recipe with a 2kg cut of Jacob’s Ladder for mouthwatering ribs:
Jacob’s Ladder boasts plenty of marbling; this provides good flavour and makes it ideal for marinating, smoking and popping onto a barbecue. Best cooked long and slow for a melt-in-the-mouth flavour.
Here’s a tip worth remembering: Cook the day before if you want to give the dish time for the flavour to mellow and develop.
This ‘holy grail’ beef rib, Jacob’s Ladder, is also the name we chose for our business. Known for describing the stairway between heaven and earth it felt appropriate with us practising the biodynamic farming principles and upholding the traditional butchery craft and nose-to-tail eating where cuts like the Jacob’s Ladder are highlighted once more.
Make sure that you order your Jacob’s Ladder well in advance, especially if you’re buying from a farm like ours where we only butcher a limited number of animals a year. We are working on a forequarter this week so anyone wishing to try out this incredible cut should order in haste!