Braised short ribs are one of those dishes that I tend to lean towards ordering from restaurants. I never knew how they’d get that meat so tender and where the heck I could buy that meat to make at home. Well years ago, I finally did some investigating and realized that wow, pretty much every grocery store carries beef short ribs.
I’ve made variations of this recipe for years but decided I needed to clean up the quality of my ingredients. This recipe does say WINE BRAISED but don’t we have an adaptable version for those who do not want to use alcohol in this recipe, if you are following Whole30, etc.
We start off with 3-4 pounds of bone in beef short ribs. This dish is set to serve 4, but I would suggest that if you’d like to have leftovers, I’d double the recipe. This recipe takes a little bit of prep but it is totally worth your time!
If making mashed potatoes, rinse your potatoes and place in a large pot to boil while you prepare the rest of the dish. We call these Rustic mashed potatoes because we leave the skins on. You will know the potatoes are done when they are fork tender. If you don’t want mashed potatoes we have a few other options from previous recipes linked here. You can pair the short ribs with our goat cheese garlic smashed potatoes with have that night tangy flavor to off set the richness of the braising juices. We also have the roasted garlic parsnip cauliflower mash recipe here if you’d like to pair that side dish If you are looking to keep this recipe low carb, we have a super easy recipe to make your own riced cauliflower.
How to Make Braised Short Ribs
Now to get the short ribs started. You want to pat the short ribs to get rid of the extra moisture, I usually use a paper towel. Once the short ribs are dry, sprinkle them with salt and pepper and then toss them in the arrow root power or tapioca starch works well too if that’s what you have on hand.
Heat a Dutch oven or a pan to medium high heat with your ghee, butter, avocado oil, or coconut oil all would work. You want to brown the short ribs on EVERY side. This part adds to the texture and flavor of the dish.
Once the short ribs are browned, remove from pan or Dutch oven, and set aside. In the same pan you used to brown the short ribs, add in the mushrooms and onion. Sauté for 5-7 minutes until the mushrooms are nice and soft and the onions are translucent. Add in the garlic, 1 cup of wine, 1 cup of stock (2 cups if not using wine), 1 teaspoon thyme, and 1 teaspoon of chopped rosemary, 6 ounce can of tomato paste. Cook down for 8-10 minutes.
Now comes the method of cooking. If you are cooking in the slow cooker or crock pot pour the mushroom mixture into the crock pot and place the short ribs on top. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 3-5. If you want the short ribs completely fall apart tender, you are going to wan to opt for the longer cooking time. If you want a little chew to the short ribs check them at the shorter cooking time and see if that is our preference.
If you are using the Dutch oven, place the short ribs on top of the mushroom mixed and cook at 325 degrees for 3-5 hours depending on preference of tenderness. Every oven and crockpot vary in real temperature so just make sure you check the meat during the recommended cooking times.
About this time your mashed potatoes should be ready. In our photos we made a simple mashed potato base with potatoes, raw milk (you can easily substitute almond milk or coconut milk), salt, and ghee and used a hand mixer to whip them up. Once the potatoes are fork tender, we removed them and placed them in a large bowl. Mash them with a potato masher or fork. Add in the ghee, milk of choice, and salt. I used a hand mixer to whip them up, but you can use a fork just as well. If you prefer your potatoes to be thinned out – add more milk. Put in an oven safe dish that you can use to reheat when the short ribs are done cooking. You can also leave making the mashed potatoes until about 30-45 minutes before the short ribs are done cooking, so you don’t need to worry about reheating.
These short ribs have such a rich flavor that I like to keep the side dishes simple. Simple mashed potatoes and a side salad check all the boxes for me. I guarantee that this recipe will have everyone at the table complementing you on your cooking skills.
I suggest you plate this meal up! You did the work and now make it look fancy! Take your plate or bowl, put a scoop of potatoes in there and swirl it with the back side of a spoon. Place 1-2 short ribs on top of the mashed potatoes and if you have any extra thyme or rosemary lay some on the short ribs. Enjoy with a glass of wine, water, spindrift, or whatever fits your mood. This is a comfort dish for sure and perfect for a fancy night in.
Let us know what you think of the recipe and don’t forget to tag us in your photos on Instagram.
Wine Braised Short Ribs with Rustic Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 3-4 pounds beef short ribs bone-in, grass-fed if you can find them
- ¼ cup arrowroot powder, tapioca starch or regular flour works too
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 onion, diced
- 8 ounces mushrooms
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup chicken, beef, or vegetable stock
- 1 cup red wine - any kind of red wine you like to drink will work, see notes to swap out
- 1 6- ounce can of tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon chopped rosemary <br> <br>
Mashed Potatoes
- 2 pounds potatoes
- 4 tablespoons ghee
- ½-1 cup raw milk or coconut milk or almond milk
- 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions
- If using a Dutch oven preheat the oven to 325ºF. If using a crock pot heat to low.
- Heat Dutch oven or a pan to medium heat. Add ghee.
- Pat short ribs dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and paper then coat in arrowroot powder.
- Brown ALL sides of the short ribs in the pan. This takes about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.
- Slice mushrooms, dice the onion and place in the pan that the short ribs were browned in. Cook for 5-7 minutes until mushrooms are soft and onions are translucent.
- Add in tomato paste, wine, broth, garlic, thyme, and rosemary. Cook for 8-10 minutes to let the wine cook down and all the flavors to combine.
- If using a Dutch oven, place browned short ribs on top of the sauce. Cover the Dutch oven with the lid and cook at 325 degrees for 3-5 hours depending on preference of meat tenderness.
- If using a crock pot, pour the sauce from the pan into the crock pot. Place short ribs on top. Cook on low 4-6 hours or high 3-5 hours.
- If making our Rustic Mashed Potatoes, add potatoes to a large pot and cover with water. Boil until fork tender.
- Remove potatoes from water and put in larger bowl. Add milk, ghee, salt and use either a fork or hand mixer to whip.
- Serving suggestion place a scoop of mashed potatoes in a bowl and place a short rib on top. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and thyme and enjoy!
Notes
To make dairy-free use almond or coconut milk instead of raw milk
