Simmer Stock - Kitchen scripts: Braised Beef Short Ribs

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Braised short ribs of beef taste, well, beefy. Steaks, hamburgers, roasts - they all taste great, but they don't really taste as beefy as cheaper cuts (e.g. lots of bones or cartilage like shoulder, ribs or shank) cooked “low and slow” in a fragrant liquid. When making it for Sunday dinner for the family, you can do the whole thing in almost one step by simply throwing the meat and vegetables into a pot and tossing it in the oven. You can also impress friends on a Saturday night by roasting the vegetables separately (and adding some wild mushrooms), removing the cooked meat from the braising liquid and puréeing the vegetables in the liquid to turn it into a sauce. The directions here describe the latter method, but I do point out the steps you can skip if you want to keep it simple. The only real trick for success is to let the meat take its time - expect at least 3 hours of oven time.

Braised Short Ribs of Beef

Ingredients:

4-5 lbs. Beef short ribs (about 6 5" ribs).
2 cups mirepoix (1 carrot, 1 celery rib and one small onion - all diced into 1/4"e chunks).
2 tbsp. butter (unsalted).
1 bunch Bouquet Garni with oregano (3 stems of Parsley, 3 stems of thyme, 1 bay leaf, 3 stems oregano).
1 Quart water.
12 Shallots peeled whole(or three small onions, quartered).
3 Large carrots, cut in 1-1/2" chunks.
2 Turnips (baseball size), cut in 1-1/2" chunks (you can also substitute any root vegetable that you like - rutabaga, turnip, kohlrabi, whatever).
12 Fingerling potatoes (or boiling potatoes cut in 1-1/2" chunks).
1 Cup wild mushrooms (chanterelles are awesome, but any fresh mushroom will do, or you can just leave out the mushrooms entirely).
Salt and pepper to taste.

Roast the shortribs

roasted ribs Short ribs are pretty fatty. While fat is flavor, you really gotta do something to get rid of some of the fat before you add other stuff to the meat. The best way is to roast the hell out of the ribs. This has the added benefit of caramelizing the outsides of the ribs (adding both color an flavor to the dish). Put the ribs in a single layer in a roasting pan, sprinkle liberally with salt an pepper, and pop into a 450° oven for 30-40 minutes. Drain off the fat and set the ribs aside until you're ready to braise.

Braise the shortribs

browned mirepoix In your braising pot (dutch oven, roasting pan, whatever you got) sauté the mirepoix (diced carrot, celery and onion) in butter over medium heat until lightly browned. Add the meat, bouquet garni and water. Cover and put in 325° oven for 2 hours.

Roast (or add) Vegetables

ribs and vegetables OK, here's where the home cooking and impress-the-guest directions diverge. For homestyle shortribs simply add the vegetables (carrots, shallots or onions, turnips, and potatoes) to the braising receptacle, cover, and continue cooking at 325° until the vegetables are tender 930-45 minutes). If you want to get fancy (and, truthfully, add another level of flavor to the finished dish), let the meat braise at 325° for another 1/2 hour, then remove the pot from the oven and turn the oven up to 450°. Put the vegetables in a roasting pan or sheet pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle on the olive oil, and roast at 450° for 20 minutes.

braised ribs Now remove the meat from the braising liquid (don't worry if the bones fall off the meat. In fact grin broadly, pump a fist into the air and shout YEAH! should this happen). Put the ribs on the vegetables, toss on the mushrooms, and pop back into the 450° oven for another 15 minutes. While the ribs and vegetables are finishing, skim any fat from the braising liquid and purée until smooth (use a stick blender if you have one, otherwise use a regular blender or food processor).

Plating

plated ribs Cover the bottom of the plate with sauce. Add the roasted vegetables, then one or two ribs, and scatter the mushrooms around the meat and vegetables. If you're serving the ribs homestyle, then everyone should be done eating by now, so serve some pie already.

Serves 4 adults

Posted on Dec 03, 2001 @ 03:36 PM