Braised Beef Short Ribs Chianti
Ingredients:
6 Pounds beef short rib, boneless or bone-in. Vegetable oil for browning meat. 1 Each yellow onions large roughly chopped. 1 Each carrots roughly chopped. 3 Stalks celery roughly chopped. 750 Milliliters Chianti or any other Italian red wine. 0.5 Bunch thyme fresh. 0.5 Bunch rosemary fresh. 8 Each garlic cloves. 0.25 Cup dark chocolate roughly chopped. 0.5 Cup molasses roughly chopped. 0.25 Cup dark brown sugar. Beef, chicken or vegetable stock to cover. Kosher salt to taste. Black pepper to taste.
Method:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a heavy bottom oven proof pan/dutch oven place a 1/16" layer of the oil and heat over med/high heat until it just barely starts to smoke. While oil is heating up, salt and pepper the short ribs.
- Begin to sear and brown short ribs on all sides. This might have to be done in batches depending on the size of your pan. Do not overcrowd the pan. This will assure proper temperature is maintained for browning the short ribs.
- Set seared short ribs aside and add onions, carrots, celery, thyme, rosemary and cook for 3 minutes. Stir often.
- Add wine carefully keeping face away from the pan in case the alcohol ignites in order to deglaze pan. With a wooden spoon scrape the bottom of the pan and reduce by half.
- Add chocolate, brown sugar and molasses. Stir well. Add short ribs and cover short ribs with stock.
- Bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Cover with pan lid or parchment paper directly on the braising liquid and then aluminum foil on top of paper.
- Braise short ribs for at least 2.5 hours in the oven. Check ribs for doneness. The ribs are done when then are fork tender or falling off of the bone if using the bone-in ribs.
- Remove short ribs from braising liquid. Puree the braising liquid and bring to a boil. Stir often. Skim the fat off of the top with a spoon. Reduce until a sauce consistency is obtained. Should cover the back of a wooden spoon. Strain the liquid with a mesh strainer.
- If making the short ribs the day before, cool uncovered at room temperature for two hours then place uncovered in refrigerator overnight.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with salt if necessary. Reheat the short ribs in the sauce while it's simmering for at least 15 minutes. Enjoy short ribs with mashed potatoes, polenta or rice.
