I have been so busy this month. Between traveling for work and working on wedding shtuff, I have not had any time to cook which has been making me sad. On the flip side, I have def racked up a ton of miles (hello, honeymoon…) and read a lot of magazines! This month every food magazine is filled with fall recipes and almost every one I have read so far has a recipe for braised short ribs. I have never made them before and all of that plane ride reading has made me crave them, so I thought I would give it a try. Don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I must say that I think this is by far the best thing I have ever made!!! The recipe I used is a Tom Colicchio recipe from Food and Wine that I, of course, altered a bit. I made a smaller batch, served over creamy Yukon Gold mashed potatoes, and made a delicious horseradish cream to top it off. Holy crap! It was soooo good. I can’t wait to serve this at my next dinner party.
Tom Colicchio’s Braised Short Ribs:
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 6 flanken-style short ribs with bones, cut 2 inches thick (about 4 pounds); see Note
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 3 celery ribs, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, thickly sliced
- One 750-milliliter bottle dry red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon
- 4 thyme sprigs
- 3 cups chicken stock
In a large skillet, heat the oil. Season the ribs with salt and pepper. Add them to the skillet and cook over moderate heat, turning once, until browned and crusty, about 18 minutes. Transfer the ribs to a shallow baking dish in a single layer.
Add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic to the skillet and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until very soft and lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Add the wine and thyme sprigs and bring to a boil over high heat. Pour the hot marinade over the ribs and let cool. Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning the ribs once.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Transfer the ribs and marinade to a large, enameled cast-iron casserole. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Cover and cook in the lower third of the oven for 1 1/2 hours, until the meat is tender but not falling apart. Uncover and braise for 45 minutes longer, turning the ribs once or twice, until the sauce is reduced by about half and the meat is very tender. This is around the point where I started boiling my taters.
Transfer the meat to a clean shallow baking dish, discarding the bones as they fall off. Strain the sauce into a heatproof measuring cup and skim off as much fat as possible. Pour the sauce over the meat; there should be about 2 cups.
Preheat the broiler. Broil the meat, turning once or twice, until glazed and sizzling, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, finish your mashed potatoes and make the horseradish cream.
Horseradish Cream:
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon horseradish
- salt
- pepper
Mix ingredients together in a bowl adjusting seasoning as needed and let sit for 30 minutes.
Fill plates with a large serving of mashed potatoes, top with meat, add a dollop of the horseradish cream, and serve. O.M.G. I can tell you that Miss Luna loved that I made this as she is still chewing on the rib bones!!! Someone had a bath tonight… Doesn’t she look pretty???
While the tomatoes still have around 15 minutes, get the crostini ready. Slice a baguette super thin, brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pop in the oven with the tomatoes for 10-15 minutes until toasted and brown.
