Braised Beef Short Ribs

If you haven't had short ribs before, there's no time like the present.  They make a rich and meaty stew like a good chuck roast or oxtails, but are also marbled with fat like a ribeye.  So I guess what I'm saying is, they're not quite the perfect diet food; more like the perfect Weight Gain 4000 food.  But that's not important - we're about cooking good food here, not always healthy food.  Plus if you do it right, you can get most of the fat out through extended cooking and proper sauce treatment.  We'll get there, keep your shirt on.

This recipe comes to you from Emeril's show, back when they used to actually have cooking shows on Food Network.  I made it last about 5 years ago, and it was pretty spectacular.  And I asked my friends for $5 each to cover their share, since I was a starving grad student at the time and not running a charity.  I have since seen the exact same dish on a menu for $40, and it didn't taste any better.

I will present the recipe using three different cooking methods, since everyone has their vessel of choice - standard pot, slow cooker, and pressure cooker.  I used the pressure cooker, and start to finish this dish took me 2.5 hours, including an hour of hands-off time.  If you want to use the other methods go for it, but I vote for faster over slower any day of the week, especially since you can't just throw everything in the slow cooker raw and expect magic to happen (you can't people, stop trying!)

Finally, the recipe calls for Essence, which is a spice mix Emeril uses.  You can find it online, or you can buy it in most stores.  I will present it here in ratio format.  If you can't figure out what the line below means, show it to an engineer and he/she will explain it to you.

Essence - 2.5 paprika : 2 salt : 2 garlic powder : 1 black pepper : 1 onion powder : 1 cayenne pepper : 1 oregano : 1 thyme

Braised Beef Short Ribs and Root Vegetables over Egg Noodles
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2003

• 2 racks beef short ribs (4 to 5 pounds), cut into individual ribs
• 2 tablespoons Essence
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions
• 1 stalk celery, trimmed and chopped
• 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 cup ruby port
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 4 cups veal or beef stock
• 1 pound butternut or acorn squash, peeled, fibers removed, and cubed
• 2 parsnips, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2 carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 12 ounces egg noodles, cooked al dente, accompaniment
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions, garnish
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley, garnish

Season the ribs with the Essence on both sides; don't be stingy with the seasoning.  Let the ribs hang out with the seasoning for at least 15 minutes, preferably an hour.

Season up the short ribs on both sides.

In a Dutch oven or large, heavy covered pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat.  Add the ribs in batches (I go with about 6 at a time) to prevent crowding and sear on all sides.  Actually brown them - don't just 'grey' them.  Get some color on there, like the picture.  You want to caramelize the sugars in the meat and form some deep flavors, including those which stick to the pan that you will be deglazing shortly.

Brown the meat in a heavy skillet, like this cast iron guy.  Really get some color on them - don't just roll them around until they stop being red.  Small batches, don't overcrowd or you'll just steam the meat.

See - they're browned.  Not grey.

Remove the meat with tongs to a plate, or to the pressure cooker/slow cooker if you're using either.  Add the onions, celery and carrots to the fat remaining in the pan, and cook, stirring, until soft and starting to caramelize, about 7 minutes.  Add the garlic, salt, red pepper, and black pepper, and cook for 30 seconds.  Add the tomato paste, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme, and cook for 2 minutes.  Being careful not to blow yourself up, add the Port and red wine and bring to a boil, stirring to deglaze the pan.  You may even consider turning off the gas when you pour in the fortified wine, unless you really don't like your eyebrows.  Cook until liquid is reduced by half.

Cook the mirepoix of vegetables in the same skillet, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan.

Pot directions: Add the ribs and stock and return to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, cover, and simmer until the meat is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  During cooking, make sure that there is at least 1-inch of liquid in the pot; add more stock or water as necessary to cover.

Pressure cooker directions: Bring the ribs and stock up to temperature while you're cooking the other vegetables in your dutch oven / skillet.  Once they're done, transfer to the pressure cooker and seal.  Cook for 40 minutes.

Slow cooker directions: Similar to the pressure cooker, transfer everything to the slow cooker as it is finished in the above process, and put it on low for 4-6 hours, or high for 2-3 hours.

I went with the pressure cooker on this recipe.  Why?

Because the meat that was falling off the bones in 40 minutes, that's why.

Add the root vegetables and cook until they are tender and the meat easily falls from the bones, another 40 minutes to 1 hour (for a regular pot, 15 minutes for pressure cooker, about an hour for the slow cooker I guess).  Remove from the heat.

Here's a big old bowl of root vegetables, to prove that there is some nutritional value in this dish.  Not the homemade Essence in the top left corner

Transfer the ribs and meat to a large bowl and cover to keep warm.  For the health conscious, pour the liquid into a fat separator and give it a while to settle, then take the non-fat part and boil it down.  At the very least, skim the fat from the surface if possible.  Bring the sauce to a boil and cook until thickened, 10 to 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaves.

Short ribs emerging from the mist.  They only come out at night.

To serve, arrange the egg noodles in the middle of a large platter.  Place the ribs on top and spoon the sauce over the meat.  Garnish with green onions and parsley and serve immediately.

The finished product.  Not the best photo because the ribs broke down before they made it to the plate, but it was one of the best meals I've had in a while