Usually when I post on here I always start with some anecdote on what inspired me to make the dish above and go from there.  But this post is a little different because nothing inspired me other than, well, jonesing for some serious short ribs.  So as I was scratching my head, researching recipes and rewriting this post over and over trying to figure out what to say other than “Short ribs are awesome and braising is full of win,” a light bulb went off.  I could not only share the recipe, but how I got there.

When I want to make something I don’t have a favorite recipe or tried and true method for, I go through a routine to find and create the dish. I adore short ribs but have never made them at home, always having them in restaurants where all the work is done for you.  But since I have had them before, I at least knew what flavor profiles I liked. Thyme, red wine, heavy tomato base. And that was my jumping off point.

First, I go through all my cookbooks I own that I know would have recipes that fit the bill. I skim and flag anything that looks promising. Then I move onto this huge manila folder I have on top of my fridge (seen above) which is a pseudo-scrapbook of recipes I have torn out of magazines, printed off websites, transcribed from my mother, etc. I’ll pull from there. And finally, I hit up my favorite recipe websites (Epicurious, Everyday Food, Food Network, etc.) and compile those as well.  I look at all the most promising recipes and pull methods, ingredients, and measurements from them and sort of mash them altogether into the final recipe which I tweak along the way as I cook, often reducing serving sizes because I’m only cooking for one or two. And that’s how a “Based on…” recipe is born here.

And speaking of the recipe, this one is a perfect Sunday dinner treat. You can easily feed an army for cheap since short ribs are super tough cuts of meat and thus they run usually under $5 a lb. Since the cuts have a lot of connective tissue, it’s all about low and slow, braising the ribs in a great liquid base and not touching them for hours, so you get the most tender, fall-off-the-bone meat ever. Plus if you just whip up some instant polenta or steamed veggies on the side, you can just throw these in the oven for 5 hours, come back, and have dinner on the table in 15 minutes. Talk about the best way to enjoy your Sunday.

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Serves 3-4 depending on how fatty your ribs are.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs bone-in beef short ribs
• 1 TBL vegetable oil
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 medium yellow (not sweet) onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 1 cup tomato puree (I can only ever find huge 28-ounce cans of this so just save the leftover for other uses!)
• 1½ cups dry red wine (I like using cabernet or pinot noir simply because it’s my favorite kind of dry red in general)
• 3 cups low-sodium beef or veal stock
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:

1.) Put oven rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 250°F.

2.) Using paper towels, pat the short ribs until they’re very dry. In a large dutch oven, heat the oil until hot but not smoking. Add the short ribs and turn until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Using tongs, transfer to a plate and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.

3.) Add the chopped carrots, onion, celery, and garlic to the leftover oil in pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in puréed tomatoes and wine, then bring to a low boil, stirring occasionally until sauce is thickened and scraping up all the little delicious bits on the bottom, for about 8 minutes.

4.) Add the beef stock, thyme, bay leaf, vinegar, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt and ½ teaspoon pepper to sauce, and bring to a simmer. Skim fat from the surface, then add beef along with any juices accumulated on plate and cover pot with a tight-fitting lid. Transfer to oven and braise until beef is very tender, about 4 to 5 hours. Do not open the oven or check the ribs until at least 4 hours in.

5.) Once ready, tranfser the ribs to a small oven-safe dish and keep in the oven on warm. Pour the sauce through a medium-mesh wire strainer into a large bowl, pressing on and then discarding solids, then skim fat from sauce. If it feels like your sauce is too thin (or too much), boil the sauce until thickened and reduced to about 3 cups. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with mashed potatoes, polenta, roasted or steamed veggies, or whatever you’re in the mood for.