Italian Braised Short Ribs

Richly flavored comfort food that’s easy to make ahead

Ready for some fall fare? This deep-flavored dish will take the chill off.

Long, slow cooking tenderizes short ribs and extracts maximum flavor from them. And this dish is best if you make it a day or so ahead of time, then reheat it right before serving. That makes it perfect for company.

So get those dinner invitations ready. No engraving required.

Recipe: Italian Braised Short Ribs

This dish shares similarities with our Wine-Braised Beef Short Ribs. But it’s less complicated to make (while still retaining nuanced flavor).

We like to serve this dish over polenta (especially Easy, No-Stir Oven Polenta). But it’s also good over pasta (we’d suggest a broad noodle shape, like pappardelle) or even over mashed potatoes.

Prep time for this dish is about 30 minutes (that includes browning the meat). Cooking time adds about 2½ hours (most of it unattended). But the dish is best if it rests overnight, so we suggest making it a day ahead (short ribs also generate a lot of fat, which is easier to remove if the fat solidifies overnight). Then you’ll need about half an hour to reheat the dish (you can work on side dishes while it’s warming).

This recipe serves 4 to 6, depending on how hungry your guests are. Leftovers keep for a few days if refrigerated in an airtight container.

Ingredients

• ~4 pounds short ribs
• salt for seasoning the ribs (about 2 teaspoons kosher salt; see Notes)
• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil for browning the short ribs
• 1 large onion (or 2 medium ones – about 2 cups diced onions)
• 5 garlic cloves (or to taste)
• 1 to 2 carrots (optional)
• 1 additional tablespoon olive oil, if needed
• additional 1 to 2 teaspoons kosher salt (to taste; see Notes)
• ½ can of anchovies (reserve the remainder for another use)
• 6-ounce can of tomato paste (or a bit less to taste)
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 bottle of dry red wine
• 1 to 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 to 2 cups beef stock, if needed (see Notes)
• additional rosemary sprigs for garnish (optional)
• chopped parsley for garnish (optional)

Procedure

1. Brown the short ribs: First dry them (the meat won’t brown properly if it’s damp) and season to taste with salt. Place a large Dutch oven over medium stovetop heat. When the pan is hot, add enough oil to coat the bottom. When the oil is heated (about 15 seconds – it’ll shimmer), add as many short rib pieces as you can without crowding the pan. Brown the pieces for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. (Don’t rush – the browner the short ribs, the better the flavor.) After the first batch is fully browned, remove the short rib pieces to a plate while you brown the remainder of the ribs.
2. Peel the onion and chop it into dice of about ½ inch. Peel the garlic and mince it finely or slice it thinly. Peel the carrots, if using, then cut them into dice of about ¼ inch. When the short ribs have finished browning, add more oil to the Dutch oven if necessary. Add the chopped onion and carrots, along with salt to taste. Brown for 5 minutes, then add the chopped garlic and brown for an additional minute.
3. Add the anchovies (drain them first), along with the tomato paste and oregano. Sauté, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Then add the red wine and simmer until it’s reduced by about half. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
4. Now add the browned short ribs back to the Dutch oven. Add the rosemary sprig(s) and the can of diced tomatoes. Add beef stock if you need more liquid (the liquid should just about cover the ribs). Bring the liquid to a simmer on the stovetop, then cover the pot with aluminum foil (push it down into the cooking pot so that it almost touches the ribs; the aluminum foil creates a seal and reduces the amount of space in the pot, making for a better braise). Cover the Dutch oven with a lid and place it in the oven. Braise for 2½ hours (3 hours if you want the meat to fall off the bone).
5. Remove the short ribs from the oven and allow them to cool. Then place them in a lidded container, along with their cooking liquid. Refrigerate for a day (or two).
6. When ready to serve, remove any solidified fat from the top of the container (the fat will have risen to the top). Place the short ribs in a cooking pot that’s large enough to hold the meat and cooking liquid, then bring it to a simmer. Cook until the meat is warm throughout. If the sauce isn’t quite as thick as you’d like: Remove the short ribs with tongs and place them on a plate; cover them with aluminum foil to keep them warm. Quickly reduce the sauce in the cooking pot until it’s the consistency you prefer. 
7. Serve the short rib pieces over polenta (or mashed potatoes or pasta). Spoon some sauce over the top. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary or some chopped parsley, if desired, and serve.

Notes

• Short ribs have a lot of bone and fat. So we always figure on a pound of short ribs per person. If that’s too much – and it may be for some people – leftover short ribs are delicious.
• Don’t like anchovies? We suggest using them anyway – you really won’t taste them in the finished dish. But they add a lot of umami.
• We usually don’t need to add beef stock to this dish (Step 4). If we don’t use it, we sometimes stir 2 to 3 teaspoons of beef base into the cooking liquid to heighten the flavor of the dish. Beef base is concentrated soup stock – you can find it in the soup aisle of your grocery store.
• We use dry Italian red wine for making this dish – something with a bit of fruit.  Sangiovese is a nice choice (use something that sells for about $10 – you don’t need a fine sipping wine.) If in doubt, ask your friendly wine merchants what they recommend.
• Salting the beef before browning (Step 1) and the onions and carrots before cooking (Step 2) helps add layers of flavor. And by salting early, you often end up not needing much, if any, salt at the end.
• We use kosher salt for cooking. It’s less salty by volume than regular table salt (the crystals are larger and more irregular, so they pack a measure less tightly). If you use table salt, start with about half the amount we suggest. But always season to your taste, not ours.

Stick to Your Ribs

“Love me some short ribs,” said Mrs. Kitchen Riffs. “These are buono to the bone.”

“Fall weather brings out the meat-and-potatoes guy in me,” I said.

“Or meat and polenta in this case,” said Mrs K R.

“Yeah, polenta rocks,” I said. “Definitely meats my expectations.”

“Anchovy those cheesy puns yet?” said Mrs K R.

She likes to rib me.

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