Red Wine Beef Short Ribs Recipe
Short ribs have been having a moment lately. In fact, so popular are they that they can be hard to find in the store, as restaurants very often get first dibs on whatever's available. If you do get hold of a package, there are many different ways to cook them. Short ribs can be grilled, as in the Korean dish galbi, but you can also braise them in liquids such as beer, port, or, as we're using here, red wine.
"This is a straightforward short rib recipe," says developer Christina Musgrave, "that will produce a flavorful, melt-in-your-mouth meal." Well, melting in a metaphorical sense, that is, since the meat and vegetables make for a dish that's anything but dainty and cotton candy-like. Instead, this stew is quite a hearty, stick-to-your ribs mélange. If you're wondering what type of ribs to use here — a well-stocked meat market might carry two different types, these being the flanken and English cuts — it seems as if any kind you find will work just fine. As Musgrave assures us, "You can do bone in or out for the short ribs in this recipe."
Gather the ingredients for the red wine beef short ribs
The main components of this short rib stew are short ribs and vegetables, the latter comprised of an onion, celery, and carrots. The sauce is made up of red wine and beef stock, while you'll also need oil for cooking as well as salt, pepper, garlic, tomato paste, and thyme for flavoring. If you don't want to use fresh thyme, Musgrave says you can always use 2 teaspoons of the dried stuff instead.
Season and brown the beef
Pat the ribs dry, then season them with salt and pepper on both sides. Once that's done, warm the oil over medium heat. Even though you're only using a small amount of oil, you'll still need a large pot (Musgrave uses a Dutch oven). The reason for this is, when all is said and done, you'll have to fit a few pounds of meat and vegetables in there, too, along with 5 cups of liquid.
Once the oil is hot, use it to brown the ribs on all sides. You might need to do so in batches in order for each rib to get sufficient pan contact.
Saute the vegetables and start the sauce
When the ribs are browned, take them out of the pot and add the vegetables. Cook these for 10 minutes, then add (in order) the garlic, tomato paste, red wine, beef stock, and thyme, stirring between each addition so the stew is well-mixed. Be sure to scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the pot and stir those in, too.
Braise the beef in the wine sauce
Put the ribs back in the pot and push them down until they're entirely submerged in the liquid. If you can't manage to do so, Musgrave advises "You can add more stock or wine as needed to cover." Cover the pot and turn the heat down so the stew is just simmering. Cook it for 3 hours, by which point those ribs should be very tender.
As this recipe makes a sizable amount, you may wind up with quite a bit of it left over. Musgrave does say that "Leftovers can be frozen," but suggests "you can also cut the recipe in half" to make a smaller amount.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 pounds beef short ribs
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 2 tablespoons black pepper
- 1 white onion, sliced
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups red wine
- 3 cups beef stock
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- Pat the ribs dry and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place a large Dutch oven on the stovetop over medium-high heat and add in the olive oil.
- Brown the ribs on all sides in the hot oil, working in batches if necessary.
- Remove the ribs from the pot and add the onion, celery, and carrots.
- Sauté the vegetables for 10 minutes, then add the garlic, tomato paste, red wine, beef stock, and thyme.
- Stir the vegetable mixture, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
- Put the short ribs back in the pot, making sure they're submerged in the sauce.
- Cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Cook the ribs for 3 hours until the meat is tender.
| Calories per Serving | 1,226 |
| Total Fat | 106.3 g |
| Saturated Fat | 45.3 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.0 g |
| Cholesterol | 215.5 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 10.6 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2.0 g |
| Total Sugars | 3.3 g |
| Sodium | 1,158.1 mg |
| Protein | 43.7 g |
