Sticky slow roasted cola short ribs

Heat oven to 160°C (140°C fan).

Take the meat out of the fridge to come up to room temperature.

Cut onion, carrots and celery into fat chunks; peel and crush the garlic.

Heat olive oil in a pan and fry the onions, garlic and dried herbs until soft.

Pour in the cola, balsamic vinegar and a small dollop of honey and bring to the boil.

Turn the heat off and leave the sauce to cool.

In a large frying pan brown in a deep baking dish and pour the cola mix over so the ribs are at least ¾ submerged.

Cover tightly with foil and cook for 3-4 hours until the meat falls away from the bone, checking its progress along the way.

Remove the ribs from the oven and transfer to a plate.

Turn the oven up to 180°C (160°C fan).

Pour cooking liquid into a saucepan on high heat to reduce and thicken. Add brown sugar to taste. If the sauce is too thin, mix some cornflour into a little water in a separate dish to make a paste then add this to the sauce before boiling it further to thicken it.

Place the ribs back in the baking tray and pour over the thick, sticky cola sauce.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes and serve with fried green tomatoes and a large Jack Daniels.