Red wine braised short ribs with Risotto

These red wine braised short ribs flavored with garlic and rosemary are soft, unctuous and truly delicious. I love serving the soft ribs on creamy risotto for the perfect comforting meal but polenta or mashed potatoes will be equally tasty. This is a great weekend recipe and perfect if you want to serve something comforting but a little fancy. If you’re looking for something a little easier, try our beef stew recipe!

Ingredients

Full braised short ribs recipe with instructions in the recipe card. 

• Beef Short ribs. 
• Olive oil. 
• Salt and pepper.
• Onion.
• Carrots. 
• Celery.
• Fresh thyme. 
• Fresh rosemary. 
• Tomato paste. 
• Bay leaf. 
• Heads of garlic. 
• Red wine. 
• Beef stock/Beef broth. 
• Salt and black pepper. 
• Sugar. 

How to braise short ribs

1. Brown the ribs: Pat the short ribs dry with paper towel then season generously with salt and pepper on all sides. Heat oil in a large, deep braising pot or a large Dutch Oven over medium-high heat. Add the short ribs. Sear them in batches, to avoid overcrowding the pan, until they are deeply golden on all sides. The more you let them brown at this stage, the more flavor the finished dish will have. Remove and set aside.
2. Start the sauce: In the same pot, add the vegetables and fresh herbs then cook for 5 minutes until fragrant. Add the garlic then pour in the wine. Allow to come to a simmer, deglazing the pot. Make sure to get all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan, this “fond” adds incredible flavor to the sauce. Stir in the beef stock then season with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. Add the beef short ribs back into the pot then cover with a lid and place in the oven for 2-3 hours or until the ribs are fork tender. Check on them half way through cooking and add a cup or two more beef stock if necessary.
3. Reduce and finish: Once the short ribs are cooked, remove the pot from the oven. Remove the ribs from the sauce and set aside. Strain out the solids then return the cooking liquid to the pot. Over medium heat, allow to come to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes until the sauce has reduced a little. Adjust the seasoning by adding a spoon of sugar, salt or pepper if necessary then add the ribs back to the sauce.
4. Serve: Serve the short ribs over risotto, creamy polenta or mashed potatoes.

How long to braise short ribs

Sliced bone-in short ribs should take approximately 2-3 hours to braise to a tender texture when cooked in the oven at 180ºC/350ºF. Whole ribs will take longer. You could cook them in a slow cooker or crockpot for 8 hours-10 hours on low or in an Instant Pot for 1 hour on high pressure.

What to serve with short ribs

1. Creamy Parmesan risotto
2. Cacio e pepe mashed potatoes
3. Creamy polenta

Short rib recipes

1. Slow Cooked Short Rib Ragu on Polenta
2. Short rib tacos with pickled red onion
3. Slow braised beef short ribs with cheesy mash