My amiable taster has been putting in the overtime dealing with our slippery slope of a driveway. Knowing we’d be shut in this weekend, I stocked up on some manly-man food. After he’d fed that beast of a machine, I knew that I would have to do likewise.
Great short ribs–like great sex–requires a good deal of preparation. You can’t hurry these babies up. But then: Oh baby oh!
Braised Short Ribs
The day before (just as it starts to snow):
Red Wine Reduction
3 cups red wine
1/2 yellow sweet onion, rough dice
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into 1-inch pieces
1 leek, sliced (white and light green parts)
6 cloves garlic, smashed
small bunch thyme
3 bay leaves
1/2 tsp. peppercorns
Place all in enameled cast iron pot and bring to boil. Simmer uncovered until wine is reduced at least two-thirds. This will take 60-90 minutes. Strain mixture and reserve.
While the wine is reducing…
The Ribs
Take a dozen beef short ribs and sprinkle them with salt, pepper. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Sear the ribs until browned. This should take about 2-3 minutes on each side. Set aside.
Heat oven to 325-degrees. Return the wine reduction to the original cast iron pot. Add the following:
1/2 large sweet yellow onion, cut into wedges
2 ribs celery, cut into 3-inch slice
2 cups carrots, peeled and sliced into 2-inch (can also save time a use a bag of baby carrots)
2 cloves garlic, smashed
Place the seared ribs on top of the vegetables. Add 1 quart of beef stock (not broth) Cover and place in preheated oven for 2 hours. When cooking time is done, allow to cool and refrigerate overnight. (Your house will smell divine and you will be sorely tempted to eat these ribs but trust me, these bad boys taste better the second day).
Day 2:
Drag the pot out of the refrigerator and to the stove. Remove the fat that has hardened on the top of your ribs. Heat the ribs thoroughly. With your kitchen tongs, place the ribs on a heated platter and shove them in a warm (not hot) oven). Strain the cooking mixture. Save the veggies for dinner and the stock for gravy-land.
Place the stock back in the cast-iron pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce again until you have 1 cup stock. Whisk in 1 tablespoon tomato paste. Heat thoroughly. Serve to hungry snow-remover types.
Love the reduction recipe. You would need a lot of time to make all this nummy food, but what else are you going to do when you’re snowed in but cook, cook, cook.
Absolutely! I have a week off and plan to stand at the stove a good portion of the time. Stay tuned!
What, pray tell, would you recommend for dessert following this “hungry man” masterpiece?
You will have to wait for another post!…
Ye heavens woman! That is a LOT of wine to be reducing.
This looks great, but I think I am still scarred by memories of Thanksgiving with a wanna-be gourmet’s contribution of “mushrooms in wine sauce” that turned out to be nothing more than canned button mushrooms dumped in half a bottle of red wine and warmed on the stove. Nasty things!
Now as for those ribs!!!??? Mmmmm! How does your “manly man” keep that girlish figure?
Shoveling snow, of course!