Braised Short Ribs

The Gourmandise School   of Sweets and Savories

Don't short the fat. It's the first day of Fall. Grab your heaviest pot, some kind of lid to cover it and turn your oven to 300. It's time to braise. First step? Caramelize those fats. Like a good croissants, your meats need a gorgeous, dark color on the outside. We're allergic to anemic looking foods, so let's start this process by letting the fats in your ribs caramelize to a deep brown color. All you need to do is place the cuts on a hot pan and leave them alone for 5-10 minutes, or until you're sure you can see deep, amber hues on the surface of your meat. Pick up the ribs with a pair of tongs and repeat until all four sides are equally, divinely, caramelized. This process deepens the flavor and isn't meant to cook the meat (if it is, your pan is too cold, and you're steaming the meat, so please turn it up). Once caramelized, add some onions, shallots, or garlic or any combination of the three. Pour in some goodness; your favorite beer, a red wine, stock- just do it. My daughter makes a jar of pickled red onions once a week, and I throw in a 1/4 cup of the juice to tenderize the meat even further as its cooking. Put a lid on it, put the pan in the oven and wait for glorious wafting. If you asked the butcher to keep the fat on the ribs (which you should have), you might want to refrigerate the pot overnight once it has cooled. The fats will rise to the surface, making them easy to skim. You'll get greater flavor by leaving the fat on as the ribs cook. Once finished, place the rib bones in a pot filled with water and herbs and any scraps of onions, carrots and whatnots. You can cook this beef stock over low heat for several hour, but we feel safer placing this back in the oven, covered, at 200F overnight. Braised Short Ribs We love serving this over polenta, though we are using it as a pasta sauce in this morning's Fall Pasta class with the addition of thinly sliced radicchio in the braise and toasted hazelnuts over whole grain pappardelle. 2 lbs. bone-in short ribs 3 Tbsps oil salt and pepper 1 yellow onion, sliced 4 garlic cloves 3 cups broth (or 2 cups broth and 1 cup wine or beer) 1 sprig oregano 1 sprig rosemary  1. Preheat your oven to 300 F. 2. Place a Dutch oven or heavy pot on the stove and turn heat to medium high. While its heating, rub the ribs with oil and press generously into salt and pepper. 3. Sear the meat on all sides, about 5 minutes on each side, until each is caramelized well. 4. Add the onions and garlic and cook down for 5 minutes. Pour in the liquid, add the herbs and cover.  5. Once simmering, place the pot, covered, in the oven for 2-1/2 hours. 6. Once cooked, you can: a) shred off the bone and serve immediately, b) let it get to room temperature and place in the fridge for 8-24 hours, then skim the fat off the surface and store, or c) freeze to use at a later date. Wishing you a delicious day,  Clémence and Hadley