It seems like a million years ago, but, once, I lived in South Korea. I had never left Canada before making the move. I had never lived in a city. Suddenly, I found myself in a crowded, loud and boisterous neighbourhood in a city just south of the capital, Seoul.

As an English teacher, my school provided me with accommodation and while the school was in a well-to-do area, my apartment was on the edge of town; surrounded by rice fields and trees.

I learned a lot from my three years in South Korea. Up until then, I was used to plain food, cooked simply. The burst of flavour in every Korean dish was jarring, at first, so I started eating their more mild foods; working my way up to enjoying their national dish, Kimchi (fermented, spiced cabbage) and the base flavours used in almost every dish: sesame oil, green onion, sweet soy sauce, fermented bean and chili paste and lots of garlic and chili.

Years later, I often crave these flavours when I want something wholesome and filling. My school provided a delicious lunch every day. My four-year-old students would eat seaweed and tofu soup, fried anchovies, spicy kimchi and piles of rice each day – I quickly realsied their palates were better-developed than my own.

One dish we would have, every now and then, was soy-braised beef with quails eggs. The quails eggs were marinated in the stew's sauce and provided a gorgeous creaminess; while the deep flavour of the beef balanced the dish out. This is the recipe which made me fall in love with Korean food.

The other day, I was in our local Lidl and found quails eggs on special – and I knew exactly what I had to make!

I recently ordered some pork and Killenure Dexter beef from Andarl Farm in Co Mayo. What I like about Andarl Farm (aside from their home-bred 'velvet pork') is the ability to buy less popular cuts of meat, such as pork neck and beef short ribs. I had the short ribs in my freezer and knew they would be perfect for this dish.

Preparing short ribs can take time. You either need to slice the meat very thinly before grilling or searing, or, as in my case, you need to braise them for a few hours in the oven. Braising is a combination wet and dry heat method, where you sear the outside of the meat before slowing cooking in a sauce or stock. It's often used on tougher pieces of meat (stewing lamb or beef).

Being rurally located, it was pure luck which brought me into the path of quails eggs. This recipe is perfectly fine without the eggs, or you could boil a few chicken eggs and quarter them before adding them to the finished stew.

When looking for quails eggs, your best best is usually your local Polish shop.

Some tips: you can make this dish, in its entirety, in around three or four hours, but I always braise my meat in the evening, separate the meat from the sauce, wrap the meat in foil and let it chill overnight. I strain the sauce and let it chill overnight, as well. Why?

Because the fat will solidify overnight and will rest on top of the sauce. Then, it's the simple matter of removing it with a spoon. This way, your sauce won't be greasy and the short ribs will be easy to slice, once chilled.

Korean-style soy-braised short ribs with quails eggs

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

2 large beef short ribs (available online for delivery from various butchers, or ask your local butcher to order you some, if they don't have any)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 onions, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

2 carrots, roughly chopped

3-4 pieces of fresh ginger

75ml light soy sauce

60g soft brown sugar

2 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp fermented bean paste (or black bean sauce), optional

1l hot beef stock (from a cube is fine; divided in half)

1 large pear, roughly grated

15-20 quails eggs (or 6 large chicken eggs) boiled, cooled and peeled

2 medium potatoes, cubed

2 medium carrots, grated and roughly chopped

1 large bunch green onions, washes and halved

Directions:

1. Let the short ribs sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then pat them dry with some kitchen towel. Season the ribs liberally on all sides with flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Preheat your oven to 180°C.

2. Heat an oven safe dish on high and heat until smoking hot. Add the vegetable oil and then gently place the short ribs in the hot dish. Sear them on all sides until dark golden brown all over. Remove from the pan and place on a plate.

3. In the same pan, with the same oil, reduce the heat to medium and add the roughly chopped carrot, onion, garlic and ginger. Sauté these vegetables until lightly cooked on all sides, then add the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil and bean paste. Stir together until everything is combined, melted and bubbling.

4. Add the beef short ribs back to the pan and cover with hot beef stock. Then, add the grated pear (it will dissolve into the sauce). Cover and place the dish in the hot oven. Cook for 90 minutes to two hours, until the meat is fork tender and the sauce has reduced.

5. There are now two options: you can remove the meat from the sauce, wrap it in foil and chill overnight, or simply add the meat to a plate. Strain the sauce through a sieve and, using a spatula, press all the juice from the vegetables into a clean pot or bowl (if chilling the meat overnight, wrap the bowl in cling film and chill as well, then scrape the solified fat off the top in the morning).

6. Bring a pot of water to a boil, once boiling, gently add the quail eggs to the pot. Boil for two to three minutes, then immediately chill the eggs in ice cold water. Chop your potatoes, carrots and green onion and set aside.

7. Slice the meat from the short ribs (your ribs could be bone-in or bone-out, just remove the meat as best you can if the bone is in) and add to a clean pot. Add the chopped potato and carrot, then top with the braising sauce and the remaining beef stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce has reduced and the vegetables are cooked through.

8. While it's simmering, gently peel the quails eggs; leaving them whole. When the potatoes and carrots are soft, add the quails eggs and chopped green onion to the pot and let marinate for an additional 30 minutes (this can be done on a very low heat or even at room temperature).

9 Serve with hot steamed rice or, if you have some, a side of kimchi. It's also nice just on its own; eat as you would an Irish stew.