Braised Short Ribs are a favorite cool-weather comfort food. Beef short ribs are braised until tender in a sauce made from carrots, celery, onion, and herbs and are perfect served over mashed potatoes, polenta, or rice

Serves 4

sipandfeast.com

INGREDIENTS
4 ½ pounds English cut short ribs trimmed of silverskin and excess fat – see notes below
½ cup flour for dredging only
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium onions diced
4 medium carrots diced
3 celery ribs diced
10 cloves garlic smashed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
14 ounces crushed plum tomatoes
2 cups dry white wine
2 medium bay leaves
3 sprigs thyme
2 sprig rosemary
2-3 cups low sodium chicken stock or enough to almost cover the ribs

Gremolata (optional):
½ cup Italian flat-leaf parsley minced
1 clove garlic minced
1-2 teaspoons orange zest
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 300f and set the rack to the middle level.

Heat a large stainless steel pan to medium heat. Trim short ribs of any silverskin and excess exterior fat. Dry the short ribs with paper towels and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Dredge the ribs in the flour and shake off the excess. Add the olive oil to the pan and sear the short ribs on all sides until well browned. Work in batches, if required, to not overcrowd the pan. Set all of the seared short ribs aside.

Remove all but 3 tablespoons of the fat and oil from the pan and turn the heat down to a touch less than medium. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Saute for about 10-12 minutes or until very soft. Once soft, add the garlic cloves and cook until golden (about 2 minutes).

Add the tomato paste and stir frequently for 3-5 minutes. Next, add the wine and turn the heat to high. Scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil for 5 minutes.

Lower the heat to a simmer and add the tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, and rosemary. Taste test the sauce and season with a bit of salt and plenty of pepper. Don’t use too much salt at this time since the sauce will reduce and concentrate.

Pour the sauce into a roasting pan or baking dish. Place the short ribs into the pan. Pour enough chicken stock to almost submerge the short ribs. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 3 hours, turning the ribs over at the halfway point. After 3 hours remove the foil. Continue to cook until the meat is fork-tender but not falling apart (~30-60 minutes).

Once tender, remove the short ribs from the oven and place them onto a platter tented with foil. Degrease the sauce with a fat separator, paper towels, bulb baster, or just skim with a spoon. Remove and discard the herbs. To thicken the sauce, transfer to a pot and turn the heat to high or if satisfied with the sauce’s consistency just serve as is. Taste test the sauce and make final adjustments to salt and pepper.

Serve the braised short ribs over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, polenta, or with crusty bread. Top with the gremolata if desired.

Notes:
– One large 3 to 4-inch long English cut short ribs is a perfect portion size. If the ribs are smaller, 2 or more per person might be needed. For this reason, pounds were specified over the number of short ribs.
– Cooking time is a rough estimate. Cook until the fat has rendered and the ribs are very tender. Depending on the fat composition and size of the short rib more or less than 3 ½ hours of braising time might be required.
– Serving the short ribs the next day is even better if you have the time!

Short Ribs with Pappardelle is the ultimate comfort food that is perfect for cooler nights when all you want to do is cozy up with a warm bowl of pasta. Beef short ribs are braised in a tomato and red wine sauce then tossed with pappardelle ribbons and topped with Parmigiano Reggiano. This is the ragu to end all other ragus.

Serves 6

sipandfeast.com

INGREDIENTS
10 3-4″ bone-in short ribs about 3-4 pounds
2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more to taste
½ teaspoon black pepper plus more to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium carrots diced
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves garlic sliced
3 ounces tomato paste
2 cups dry red wine chianti, cabernet, etc
1 28 ounce can plum tomatoes hand crushed or blender pulsed
1 large bay leaf
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1 pound pappardelle
1 cup reserved pasta water will most likely not need all of it
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano grated, for finishing

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 300f and move racks to make enough room to accommodate a large Dutch oven pot in the middle of the oven.

Pat the short ribs dry and season with 2 teaspoons kosher salt and a ½ teaspoon of black pepper on all sides. Heat a large Dutch oven to medium heat. After the pot is hot add the olive oil. Give the short ribs one more pat to make sure they’re dry, then add them to the pot and and sear on all sides. Work in batches and do not crowd the pan. Short ribs should take about 10 minutes to sear on all sides per batch.

Set the seared short ribs aside and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add in the carrots, and onions and saute in the beef fat until very soft (about 10 minutes) then add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer.

Next, add in the tomato paste and cook for 3 minutes stirring frequently. Add the wine and turn heat to medium. Using a wooden spoon scrape all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan.

After cooking the wine for 3 minutes, add the plum tomatoes, thyme, and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Once simmering add the short ribs to the pot, stir, then turn off and cover. Cook short ribs in the oven for 2 hours. After two hours, place the lid partially ajar and continue to cook for 1 more hour.

Remove Dutch oven, then remove short ribs and place onto a large cutting board. Using 2 forks, shred the meat. Discard any hard parts of fat and the bones. Also, discard any thyme stems and the bay leaf. Return the shredded meat to the pot and keep warm over low heat. Taste test the ragu and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water (2 tablespoons kosher salt) and cook pappardelle until al dente. Heat a large pan to medium-low heat and add in 2 cups of the short rib ragu. Add the al dente pasta to the pan and cook for 1 more minute mixing well to thoroughly coat the pasta.

If the pasta needs more ragu, add more now. If the sauce seems a little dry add a bit of reserved pasta water to loosen it up. Serve plated with grated Parmigiano Reggiano and the remaining ragu on the side.

Notes:
Makes 6 moderate or 4 large servings.

Making the ragu 24 hours in advance and refrigerating overnight will yield even better flavor. If doing so, you can remove some of the fat that will rise to the top with a spoon after being chilled.

The collagen-filled membrane or connective tissue can be eaten, but for the purposes of shredding the beef and to have a uniform texture, I recommend removing it. You can save it with the bones to make a stock if desired.

Leftovers can be saved for up to 3 days and can be reheated in the microwave.

The leftover ragu can be frozen for up to 3 months.