Saturday, September 22, 2012

Wine-braised Short Ribs with Oven-baked Polenta and Green Beans

I've never cooked short ribs before.  I've eaten them plenty of times (I'm not usually the one who orders them... but I steal a bite whenever Jeremy gets them.).  Jeremy loves short ribs. So since the weather has gotten a little bit cooler, I decided to make some short ribs.  Clearly, this meal was allll for Jeremy... yeah... I'm going with that.  :)

This morning at the public market, we stopped by one of the meat counters and picked up some short ribs (along with our weekly vegetable haul... the bargains on fresh homegrown veggies are unbelievable).  The public market has to be one of my favorite things about Rochester... and we're really enjoying living here!

After reading a number of recipes, I did my usual and didn't follow any of them.  :)  I used the basic techniques and the timing of the recipes but made the flavors my own.  And the result -- delicious, amazing, beyond tasty.  The sauce had a nice sweetness from the veggies and wine (but not overly sweet) and had a very rich texture.  I used a lot of crushed red pepper flake in this meal so it was spicy.  You can cut back on that if you don't want spicy short ribs.  (As a note, the short ribs give off a lot of fat during the cooking.  You can try to skim that off.  If you cool the ribs it will congeal and can be removed.  We just scooped around it tonight, I'll remove it tomorrow.)

Don't be scared by the length of time this takes -- most of the cooking is done in the oven and so you're not really doing anything.  Perfect for a weekend meal.

I cooked the polenta after I took the short ribs out of the oven.  (I can't wait until I (eventually) have a kitchen with more than 1 oven...)  When the polenta had been in the oven for fifteen minutes I brought some water to a boil and cooked the green beans.  After draining, I dressed them with a little margarine.  Delicious!

I haven't said much about the polenta... I've made it before and it's very tasty.  It's amazing when you have dishes with a sauce or gravy for it to soak up.  And it's fairly healthy.  :)

I don't think I can adequately represent how absolutely amazing this meal was... Jeremy just asked if this can be our "Saturday meal."  While I will not make this every Saturday, this will not be the last time.

Luckily, we still have a lot left.  We probably ate only a third of the meat.  I will probably not be allowed to touch the pan again though... Jeremy gets a little protective of his short ribs.  :)



Recipe:
3 lbs. beef short ribs (whatever cut is fine)
1 medium carrot, finely diced
2 celery stalks, finely diced
2 medium red onions, finely diced
4 cloves garlic (about 2 tbs.), minced
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
2 tbs. tomato paste
2 c. red wine (I had a bottle of Yellowtail Shiraz so I used that)
1 tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 c. chicken stock (low sodium)
salt and pepper
2 tbs. vegetable oil

1. Season short ribs liberally with salt and pepper (I sprinkled probably 2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper over them in total.  Use what looks good to you.)
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
3. Heat a large oven-proof dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add oil.  When hot, add short ribs, in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pan, until browned on all sides (this took about 10-12 minutes total for me).  Remove short ribs and drain oil, reserving about 2 tbs. in the pan.
4. Add carrot, celery, onion, and garlic to the pan.  Reduce heat to medium and saute, stirring frequently, until tender, 8-10 minutes.  Add tomato paste, red pepper flake, and thyme.  Cook for 2-3 minutes more, stirring frequently.
5. Add the wine, vinegar, and stock to the pan and bring to a boil.  Boil for 4-5 minutes until reduced slightly.
6. Return the short ribs and any accumulated juices to the pot.  (You want the ribs to be mostly, but not completely submerged.  Add water or stock if necessary so the ribs are mostly covered (I didn't need any extra but it will depend on the number of ribs you have and the shape of your pot.)).
7. Cover the pot and place in the oven.  Braise for 4 hours.  Turn the ribs over halfway through cooking.  (Check every couple hours to see if more liquid is needed to keep the ribs mostly submerged. I didn't add any.)
8.  Remove from oven, turn the ribs around in the sauce (mine broke apart... nice and tender).  Serve over polenta.

Polenta:
3/4 c. cornmeal
3 c. water
1/4 c. milk (I use skim)
2 tbs. margarine
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In an oven-safe casserole dish (preferably with a lid), whisk together the cornmeal, water, salt, and pepper.  Cover the dish.
2. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
3. Remove polenta from the oven and add milk and margarine.  Whisk until the margarine is melted and incorporated and the polenta is creamy.  Serve.

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