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    Home » main course » beef » Secret Recipe Club: Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

    Secret Recipe Club: Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

    Feb 2, 2014 · 15 Comments

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    It's baaaaaaaack! (And by that, I mean the Secret Recipe Club.)

    The group took a little break over the holidays to give everyone some breathing room, but by the time January rolled around, I was totally raring to go. I just get such a kick out of seeing whose blog I get and then trying to find just the right recipe to make.

    Braised Shortribs

    Meet This Month's Blogger

    Good things come to those who wait, because my assignment for February turned out to be Aly from Cooking in Stilettos.

    Aly's a Louboutin-wearing, pug-owning, crockpot-loving, burn-up-the-dance-floor kinda gal from Philly. She's also a total hoot if you've ever had the pleasure of chatting with her.

    There are tons of amazing recipes on Aly's blog, so I knew it was going to be a tough decision to narrow things down to just one choice. As it is, I've got at least five more recipes bookmarked for another day!

    However, the weekend I cooked and photographed this dish, the Polar Vortex decided to show up for another visit, so the weather kind of ended up making my mind for me. Cold weather always gives me an instant craving for belly-warming comfort food, and her recipe for Braised Short Ribs looked like just the thing.

    Braised Shortribs

    How I Made This Recipe My Own

    The biggest change I made was to adapt this recipe into a stovetop braise, rather than using a slow cooker like Aly does.

    That wasn't entirely intentional, to be honest. I'm pretty sure the cold must've frozen my brain, because it was mid-afternoon when I suddenly remembered that I'd need 6 hours to prepare this in the slow cooker. And since I'm not a fan of eating dinner at 9pm, taking the stovetop route was pretty much a no-brainer, since it shaves off a couple hours from the cooking time.

    (Also, as a bonus, Aly's recipe does most of the initial prep in a Dutch oven anyway, so doing the whole thing on the stovetop means one less pot to wash at the end. Less dishes is always a win in my books.)

    As always, I ended up making a few more changes to the recipe as I went along.

    I used only a half-cup of flour because that turned out to be more than enough to coat all of my shortribs, and I threw in some finely chopped celery to the vegetable base to make it into a traditional mirepoix.

    Oh, I also added some thick-sliced double-smoked bacon to the mix, because... well... bacon.

    Braised Shortribs

    In Praise of Braises

    I know people tend to be scared off by braises because they take so gosh-darned long to cook, but there's usually less than half an hour of active work involved.

    Once that's out of the way, the dish just spends a few hours simmering away on the stovetop, filling your house with the most delicious of aromas while you devote yourself to more important things.

    You'll need to hang out at home for the next little while, but there's plenty you can do around the house. Read a good book, knit up a new scarf to ward off the cold weather, catch up on your favourite TV show, or (if you really must) get some housework done.

    And when you return to your kitchen a few hours later, what awaits you is a bubbling pot of pure deliciousness, just waiting to be spooned onto a golden-yellow mound of creamy polenta for a hearty Saturday-night supper.

    Braised Shortribs

    The Verdict

    On a comfort food scale of 1 to 10, these shortribs score an 11.

    They're rich and hearty with a flavourful gravy that warms you right down to your toes, and so tender you can practically eat them with a spoon. They go perfectly with polenta, but if you're feeling particularly lazy, you can also serve them straight-up with a hunk of crusty bread for mopping up the sauce.

    Like I said earlier... good things come to those who wait, and these short ribs are certainly no exception.

    //

    Print
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    Red Wine Braised Short Ribs


    ★★★★★

    5 from 2 reviews

    • Author: Adapted from Cooking in Stilettos
    • Total Time: 5 hours 30 mins
    • Yield: 6 1x
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    These slow braised short ribs are serious wintertime comfort food - deeply satisfying, belly-warming, and stick-to-your-ribs filling. Serve on top of creamy polenta or cooked egg noodles.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • ½ lb thick-cut bacon or pancetta, diced
    • 4 lbs bone-in beef short ribs, cut into 3-4" lengths
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
    • 1 cup flour
    • 3 tbsp olive oil
    • 3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
    • 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
    • 2 ribs celery, finely diced
    • 4 cloves garlic, minced
    • 1 bottle (750ml) full-bodied red wine
    • 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
    • 3 sprigs fresh thyme
    • 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
    • 1 bay leaf
    • 1 cup beef stock

    Instructions

    1. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, season the short ribs with salt and pepper, then add flour and toss until coated on all sides.
    2. In a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven set over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add bacon and fry until crisp, about 5-7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove from pan and set aside.
    3. Shake the excess flour from the short ribs and, working in batches, add to the pan and sear on all sides until well browned, about 3-5 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside.
    4. Reduce the heat to medium, and add the onions, carrots and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and golden, about 10 minutes.
    5. Pour in the wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen up all the delicious browned bits, then add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Return the short ribs and bacon to the pan, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 4 ½ to 5 hours or until the short ribs are very tender and falling off the bone. Discard then herb sprigs and bay leaf.
    6. Serve immediately, with a creamy polenta or lots of mashed potatoes to soak up the sauce.
    • Prep Time: 30 mins
    • Cook Time: 5 hours

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    Comments

    1. Sue/the view from great island says

      February 18, 2014 at 10:24 pm

      I discovered short ribs in a big way this year--- this looks amazing!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    2. Dionne Baldwin says

      February 10, 2014 at 4:00 pm

      Aly's recipes are always so tempting! I'm glad to see the wine braised short ribs here. They look sooooo very tempting. I will have to put a bookmark on this for later. Thank you for sharing this with us!

      Reply
    3. shannon @ a periodic table says

      February 7, 2014 at 8:11 am

      you know, Isabelle, i am not always a meat-eater. but i have a big thing for short ribs, and these look absolutely perfect. I could dive right into that; like physically dive.

      Reply
    4. [email protected] Chef in disguise says

      February 4, 2014 at 2:24 pm

      That recipe is calling to me! It is freezing here and just looking at your pictures makes me feel warm

      Reply
    5. Jess says

      February 4, 2014 at 1:28 am

      Brrrrr - stay warm up there! This looks like just the dish to help keep you that way though!

      Reply
    6. Kate | Food Babbles says

      February 3, 2014 at 5:25 pm

      How cool that you got Aly this month! This recipe looks absolutely sensational! I've already bookmarked and pinned it for good measure because I'm going to be making this over the weekend for sure. You made my mouth water with those pictures!

      Reply
    7. sarah k @ the pajama chef says

      February 3, 2014 at 5:20 pm

      oh wow- how delicious! i wish i had some right now :)

      Reply
    8. Beth @ Good to be the Cook says

      February 3, 2014 at 4:17 pm

      Isabelle- gorgeous! Short Rib anything... really. These look fantastic though, yum!

      Reply
    9. Camilla @ Culinary Adventures says

      February 3, 2014 at 2:23 am

      As always, your post made me hungry...and it's almost midnight. I LOVE shortribs. Will definitely give this a try.

      Reply
    10. Jane, The Heritage Cook says

      February 3, 2014 at 1:56 am

      Isabelle - you and I should have gotten together this month; your main course and my dessert would have been perfect, both had red wine in them! LOL. Great choice!!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    11. chitchatchomp says

      February 3, 2014 at 12:59 am

      Your photos always make me want to dive right in with my spoon, and the addition of bacon....enough said!

      Reply
    12. Aly ~ Cooking In Stilettos says

      February 3, 2014 at 12:53 am

      Awwww Isabelle!!! I'm SO STOKED you got me and that you picked one of my absolute favorite winter recipes :) Heck - I'd braise this in the summer - just because. Your photos - as always - are stunning and I love your take on the recipe :) Thank you!

      Reply
    13. Sweet as Sugar Cookies says

      February 3, 2014 at 12:50 am

      Forget restaurants! I'd rather come and eat at your house with a dish like that.

      Reply
    14. [email protected] says

      February 3, 2014 at 12:19 am

      Oh my goodness. THere's a restaurant here in Nashville that makes a very similar dish over polenta. This reminds me of that very noteworthy dish.

      Reply
    15. PolaM says

      February 3, 2014 at 12:15 am

      Those look amazing! I would love a bowl of that any day, but I could kill for it on polar vortex days!

      Reply

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    Hello! I'm Isabelle, and this is my blog. I'm a 40-something coffee-chugging, booty-shaking, bargain-shopping, trucker-swearing self-taught cook with a major addiction to vintage cookbooks. Come for the recipes, stay for the terrible puns! Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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