Braised Short Ribs a Fall Favorite

I was surprised to find that I hadn't yet posted my short rib recipe.  I love boneless short ribs during the fall.  They are the perfect comfort meal served with mashed potatoes and gravy and better yet the leftovers make a good pasta sauce, served over pasta or spaghetti squash. 

The first time I made this in 2010 I used shallots and fresh thyme, second time I added the tomato paste, bay leaf, celery and used dried thyme. Finally I have this recipe. For Valentines day 2012 I added the bell pepper and parsnip to the pot which is also great. I first tried short ribs at Aurora Bistro in Pleasanton and they were an immediate favorite. They are tiny tender flaky roasts.

SHORT RIBS

Prep: 1 hour, Cook 3 hours, Rest: 20 minutes

6 slices bacon, fried and crumbled

4 boneless beef short ribs, dredged in 2 T. flour

Kosher salt & Coarse Black Pepper to taste

1 onion, diced

1 C. (20-30) baby carrots, cut in thirds

2 stalks celery, diced

8 oz. (12) baby bella mushrooms, sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 T. tomato paste

1 ½ C. good red wine

32 oz. beef stock, or as much as needed

¼ t. dried thyme

½ t. course black pepper

1 t. Kosher salt

3" sprig fresh rosemary

1 bay leaf

Preheat oven to 350°F. Take ribs out of fridge to come to room temperature. Fry bacon in a large cast iron stock pot or braiser. Remove bacon and drain on paper towel. Drain some of the bacon grease leaving about 1 tablespoon. Dredge ribs in flour. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add ribs and brown on all sides, remove. Add onions, celery and carrots. Saute for 4 minutes or until onions begin to get translucent. Add mushrooms, saute another 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute another minute. Add tomato paste and saute another minute. Add wine and scrape bottom of pan to release any bits. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Add thyme, salt, pepper, rosemary sprigs and bay leaf, stir one minute. Add back ribs and enough broth to almost cover ribs (2 C. or depending on pot size), leaving about ¼-½" showing. Add bacon. Put on the lid and place in oven. Cook for 2 hours, reduce heat to 325°F add more broth if dry, stir and cook another hour. Remove pan from oven and let ribs sit for 20 minutes with lid on. If necessary skim off any fat. Remove the bay leaf and rosemary sprig stem.

Note: Ribs can be done after the two hours but sometimes they will not be as tender because of the size and because the connective tissue/fat isn’t fully melted so don’t cut the time unless when you check they are flaky. You can add more ribs if your pot is large enough you will just add more of the broth. Leave at least a half inch from top of pan so it doesn’t overflow.

Serving Suggestion: Serve rib sauce over ribs with cauliflower mashed or regular mashed potatoes, gravy and roasted asparagus. Gravy: While ribs are resting, start a roux with 2 T. butter or use the bacon fat and 2 T. flour, cooking off flour. Remove 1 ½ C. broth from short ribs or use the leftover beef stock. Mix into roux and cook till thickened. Serve over potatoes.

Variations: 

• Use two large portabella mushrooms or 8 ox. of button mushrooms if you can’t find baby bellas.
• Add 1 seeded, diced red bell pepper to the saute and 1-3 pealed diced parsnips and remaining carrots when you add ribs.

Leftovers: Puree the juice or leave it whole. Shred the ribs, add to sauce and bring to a simmer. Boil some pasta (egg noodles or fusilli spirals) or roast a spaghetti squash for an hour and shred with a fork. Mix cooked pasta or spaghetti squash with sauce.