An amazingly tender short rib ragu recipe. You can’t go wrong with recipes that require wine.
Winter flavors are straight forward but so hearty. I love it. Rosemary, red wine, beef, carrots, celery. There are so many beautiful ways you can use these ingredients.
Other Delicious Winter Dishes:
For the Prep
There is a layer of membrane on the ribs. If you can, I would peel it off. You can separate it from the meat after it’s cooked too. Removing it after cooking is easier, but it will be slimier. Or you could leave it on and just weirdly slurp it down or awkwardly spit it out and leave it on the side of your bowl. Sometimes I do that if I’m lazy.
Ah the sear. Do not skip this part. This process along with sautĆ©ing the vegetables produces fond. It will make your braising liquid taste very flavorful. After you set the meat down to sear, do NOT move it until 1 – 1 1/2 minutes are up. It will stick to the pot if you don’t. But once it develops that nice crust from the sear it will be easy to move.
The braising liquid will be liquidy when it’s first done. Now we simmer it without the meat to thicken it up.
It will continue to thicken as it cools. After it cools, I recommend removing the fat layer on top. This is easier to do once it’s been refrigerated. If you’d like to eat it right away, that’s ok. It will just be a little thinner and slightly more oily.
There were still some chanterelles at Costco! They’re only around for about 3-4 weeks. I sautĆ©ed them separately with some salt and pepper and added them to the ragu after.
Stovetop and Oven Instructions
If you don’t have an instant pot you can make this dish in the oven. It just won’t be as…instant. Hah.
Preheat the oven to 325 F. Sear the meat and saute the vegetables on medium heat in a dutch oven on the stovetop. Bring to a boil on the stove when indicated in the instant pot instructions. Cover and place in the oven for 3 hours. After 3 hours, remove the meat and simmer the braising liquid uncovered on the stove for 30 minutes.
Serve over pasta. When my Italian friend saw what shape I used he asked, “Why do you hate my people?” Traditionally you serve this with pappardelle. However, a few months back Heinen’s was having an 8 for $8 sale on pasta. So naturally I got 8 boxes of pasta and NONE of them were pappardelle. With 4 boxes left, I wasn’t about to buy more. So this ragu was served with gemelli instead! Still delicious.
Short Rib Ragu
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3-3 1/2 pounds short ribs
- kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
- 3 carrots, medium diced
- 2 stalks celery, medium diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1 28- oz can whole peeled tomatoes*
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
Instructions
- Sprinkle the short ribs with salt and pepper. In an instant pot on the "normal"* saute setting, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Sear the short ribs. Sear each side for about 1-1 1/2minutes. You may have to do this in batches – all of the short ribs probably won't fit. Don't crowd the pot or else they won't develop a nice brown sear. Remove the ribs and set aside.
- Add another tablespoon of olive oil. Saute the onions for about 2 minutes. Add the carrots and celery and saute for 5 more minutes, adding a sprinkle of kosher salt about halfway through cooking. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds-1 minute, until it starts to smell fragrant. Add the tomato paste and saute for 30 seconds.
- Quickly pour in the red wine. It will bubble up quickly. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits at the bottom of the pot. Add the canned tomatoes and beef broth. Switch the saute setting to "more"* to bring to a boil. Add the bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, parsley, and basil. Add about 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. You'll be tasting it later so don't worry about getting the exact measurement right of salt and pepper.
- Once the liquid is boiling, add the short ribs. Cover and seal the instant pot and cook on meat/stew at high pressure and normal for 60 minutes. Allow to naturally release for 20 minutes before releasing manually.
- Remove the ribs. Taste the braising liquid. Add more salt and pepper if needed. With the lid off, turn the saute setting to “less” (you might have to do “normal” depending on how much it simmers) and simmer the liquid for 30 minutes.
- Pull the short ribs and recombine with the liquid. Serve over pasta.
