Braised Short Ribs

Hello again fellow foodie friends! It’s been about 4 years since I’ve posted and I truly apologize for that. LIFE! It’s crazy and evolving. So many incredibly challenging, yet beautiful life events have happened to me in the last four years. I’m married (what!), I have a daughter (what!!) and I own my own place (what!!!). I think the most shocking thing is owning my own place (in this economy!). Before publishing this, I re-read my old posts and it’s so incredible to see how much I’ve grown and evolved in four years. I’m stronger, more courageous, and more resilient. Maybe that’s all thanks to my mini-me teaching me to truly let go of control. Either way – I’m happy. Actually, I’m more than happy. And nothing makes me even happier than cooking short ribs – low and slow until perfectly and deliciously tender. A perfect meal to celebrate all of life’s changes or a meal to cozy up with your beau and indulge in with a gorgeous bottle of red from Chile (since we still cannot get any Californian wines in Canada). To cook these one, I used a Canadian cabernet sauvignon but any deep and rich cab will do!

I’ve made this meal for two and I’ve made this meal for eight – It’s truly a crowd pleaser and more importantly people will think you SLAVED AWAY all day, when really, you let the oven do all the dirty work. You start off with searing the short ribs on all sides and then eventually move to pouring in the WHOLE bottle of red wine (yes, the entire thing) and braising on low for 3 hours. I serve mine with creamy mashed potatoes (not pictured) and healthy green broccolini (pictured), but really these can go with and on top of anything. Roasted potatoes, egg noodles, carrots, peppers… the options are endless. I’ve even used this recipe to make a short-rib pappardelle pasta – Just swap half the beef stock for a can of really good crushed San Marzano tomatoes (My favourite is the Mutti brand).

I hope you enjoy this meal as much as I (and the rest of my family do). Lots of love to you and please let me know what you think in the comments!

Cheers!

xx Vassilia

Braised Short Ribs

Recipe by Vassilia MichailidisCourse: MainsDifficulty: Medium

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

3

hours 

30

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

10

minutes

Ingredients

• 5 lbs bone-in beef short ribs (2 inches thick)

• 1 med sized carrots

• 2 stalks celery

• 1 large onion

• 1 bulb of garlic

• 3 sprigs of rosemary

• 5 sage leaves

• 2 bay leaves

• 5 sprigs of thyme

• 3 tbls of flour

• 2 tbls of tomato paste

• 1 bottle of cabernet sauvignon

• 4 cups beef broth

• salt and pepper to taste

• 2 tbls unsalted butter

Directions

• Preheat oven to 325°
• Pat dry your short ribs and season generously with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Finely chop the onion, celery and carrots. Cut the bulb of garlic in half. Set aside.
• In a dutch oven, heat olive oil on med-high heat. Sear short ribs in batches on each side until brown. Remove and set aside.
• In the same pot, add the onions, celery and carrots. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté until soft.
• Add the flour and tomato paste and stir until deepened in colour.
• Pour in the entire bottle of wine and stir.
• Add the short ribs back to the pot.
• Let simmer for 30min or until wine is reduced by half.
• Add the beef broth, herbs and garlic. Bring to a boil.
• Cover loosely and transfer to oven for 3 hours.
• Remove after three hours. Meat should be fall off the bone.
• Drain herbs, onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Reduce jus in a small pot over med heat, adding butter at the very end. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with mashed potatoes and greens of your choice.