Wine-Braised Caramelized Short Ribs

The first thing I did when I handed it in my final paper was go to Verbrugge's and buy short ribs. I wanted to make them the same delicious way I did last month, but then I realized, at least in the interest of blogging, I should try something new. This recipe looks delicious; I followed it somewhat. (It's from Well Fed, which is a blog I highly recommend.)

Marinate one day in advance:

You'll need:

short ribs (I made 5, which was a little over 2lbs)-- the meaty "English" cut, not the Korean BBQ kind; trim to remove all visible fat and silver skin. I'm not someone who shirks from fat (marrow, anyone?) but trust me, it's unnecessary here

fresh rosemary and thyme, chopped together
salt and pepper
good olive oil


This is the easy part-- just put your trimmed short ribs in a shallow baking dish, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and herbs; drizzle with olive oil, and rub oil and herbs into meat with your fingers; cover with plastic wrap, and let sit in the fridge overnight.

The next day:

You'll need:

mirepoix:
1 onion, sliced
1 leek, chopped
1-2 carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1t red chile flakes
1T herbes de provence
2 bay leaves

1 bottle dry red wine (cab, merlot, whatever)-- it's ok to steal a glass to drink, as long as you have enough wine to come up half-way the ribs.

1-2c beef broth (go out and buy beef broth. don't use chicken. please.)

Gremolata:

grated lemon zest
minced herbs, including parsley

One hour before: remove marinating ribs from fridge

At least 6 hours before you want to eat:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown ribs well in hot grapeseed oil on all sides in a heavy pot or dutch oven. Remove from pot and set aside.


Add onions, salt, pepper, chile flakes, and herbes de provence. Saute until onion releases liquid and browned bits (fond) start to loosen. Add the rest of the mirepoix veggies and saute until garlic is fragrant. Add wine and bring to a boil, scraping any browned bits from pot.


Return ribs to pot, bone-side-up. They should not be fully submerged in the liquid. Add bay leaves. Cover with a tight-fitting lid (if you're not sure if your lid fits tightly, put a layer of foil between the lid and the pot. If you have a cast-iron dutch oven, you should be fine) and put in the preheated oven. Cook for 2-3 hours, until meat is fork-tender. After 1 1/2 hours, check the pot to make sure there's enough liquid. If there isn't (if the veggies look dry), add beef broth, 1c at a time, stirring gently to combine.

When meat is done, let cool. Remove ribs from pot; set aside (cover and refrigerate when cool). Strain sauce through fine mesh strainer into a bowl. Refrigerate sauce, covered, for a few hours, until fat forms a yellow layer on top.

An hour and a half before serving: Remove ribs from fridge. Remove sauce from fridge; carefully lift off fat layer with a spoon, and discard. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Thirty minutes before serving:
Spoon sauce over ribs. If you have lots of extra sauce, put it in a saucepan and boil to reduce it on the stove. You can thicken it with 1T cornstarch dissolved in 1T cold water. Return ribs to 350 degree oven, and bake until cooked through and caramelized, about 30 minutes.

To serve:
Top with gremolata (lemon zest & chopped herbs), and extra sauce, if you have it. Serve on creamy polenta or bean puree. (Picture above is served without gremolata, accompanied by carrot orzo with pecorino romano (sheep's milk cheese).