Wine Braised Short Ribs

It's October and the t-shirt and shorts weather is long gone. I'm not a fan of cold weather, but there are a couple things that I enjoy about the impending winter season: skiing and cooking with the oven! Living in a house without air conditioning, one tends to avoid using the oven when it's warm out, so for me, summer is my off-season for oven based cooking. That meant no baking and no roasting. But all that changes in the cooler seasons. I get dual use out of the oven in the winter. I get to cook and heat up the room at the same time!

I was delighted to have my friend over for early dinner last Saturday. The menu included wine braised short ribs, which requires more than two hours of oven cooking.

Wine Braised Short Ribs Print Recipe Quantity Ingredients 2.5~3 lb boneless beef short ribs  (about 6 chunks) salt pepper olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 carrot, sliced 1 celery, sliced 2 cloves garlic, minced  2 Tbsp tomato paste 1/2~2/3 tsp dried thyme 1 bay leaf (use 2 leaves if small) 2 cups red full-bodied wine (e.g. Cabernet Sauvignon) 2 cups beef broth 1/4~1/2 cup water 1 Tbsp unsalted butter Directions Take out the meat from the refrigerator about 30 minutes to 1 hour before cooking.  Pat dry the meat and season with salt and pepper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a large pot (preferably cast iron) over high heat.  Sear the meat for a few minutes on all sides until browned. Remove the meat from the pot. Set aside. Reduce the heat to medium heat.  Add the onions to the pot and cook for 4~5 minutes until semi transparent.  Add the carrots, celery and garlic, then cook for a few minutes. Add the tomato paste, thyme, and bay leaf and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the wine and scrape off the brown bits from the bottom of the pot.  Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Add the beef broth and bring to a boil again. Return the meat to the pot.  Cover the pot with a lid, and place the pot in the oven.  Cook for two and a half hours, turning over the meat every 30 minutes, until the meat is tender.  Take out the pot from the oven and remove the meat to a plate and cover with aluminum foil. Let the remaining sauce cool for 30 minutes then skim off the excess oil. Add the water if the sauce is too thick. Puree the sauce with a hand blender and add the butter.  Season with salt if necessary. Return the meat to the pot, and cook over medium heat until the sauce is well heated.  Serve with bread, mashed potatoes or polenta. serves 4~6