Short ribs are usually a tough cut of meat, so a long, slow cooking process is perfect for them. If you take a little extra time and double the recipe, the leftovers can be used for a beefy ragù perfect for topping pasta or adding to lasagna.
Don’t be turned off by the length of the recipe and its ingredients. Some of the recipe requires overnight or all-day marinating, but it’s all inactive time. In order to extract the most flavor from the beef, you’ll want to brown or sear it before letting it cook all day. So let’s get started!
Sunday Dinner Short Ribs
Marinade Ingredients
- 1 bottle dry red wine
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 4 sprigs thyme
- ¼ bunch Italian flat leaf parsley
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 pounds short ribs (I prefer English style on the bone, but flanken will do also)
Short Ribs Ingredients
- ⅓ cup flour (or more as needed)
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- canola oil
- 1 bag frozen pearl onions, defrosted and dried well
- 3 carrots, roughly chopped
- 4 stalks celery, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ¼ cup flour
- beef stock, if necessary
Marinade Instructions
- Divide the ribs into two half-gallon freezer bags and place the bags into a large baking dish where they can lie flat.
- Combine all marinade ingredients and pour over ribs evenly. Refrigerate overnight for best results or 6–8 hours. Turn over the bags about halfway through the marinade process. (Remember this step!)
- Let the ribs come to room temperature for about an hour before continuing. Remove short ribs and dry with paper towels. Reserve the marinade. It’s important to dry the ribs well so that they brown properly — this is where a lot of the flavor is developed.
Short Ribs Instructions
- Heat a Dutch oven or your slow cooker insert and add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan by about ¼”.
- Place flour, salt, and pepper into another freezer bag and mix well. Dredge the short ribs in the flour, and shake off the excess.
- Place the meaty side of each rib into the hot oil. Do not crowd the meat in the pan or it will not brown properly. This is the most important step in braising, so take your time. Remove the ribs, set aside, and repeat steps 1–3 until all ribs are browned.
In the same pan, add more oil as necessary, then add onions, carrots, and celery to the pan. Sauté until lightly browned.- Add tomato paste, stir to coat all the vegetables, and cook the paste for about 2 minutes.
- Add flour and, stirring constantly, cook for another 5 minutes without burning. The flour may turn a little dark, but that’s fine.
- Add ¼ cup of the marinade to the pan and scrape the bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let reduce and thicken slightly. Remove from the heat.
- Add the short ribs back to the pan, add the reserved marinade, and cover the short ribs by 2 inches with beef stock if necessary.
- If using the slow cooker, set on high for at least 8 hours. Cooking the ribs in a heavy cast iron Dutch oven works well at 400°F (200°C) for about 3 hours.
Serve with mashed potatoes, polenta, or pasta.
Mangia!
