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Back in my restaurant days, I DREADED Braised Beef Short Ribs because if we ran out of them mid-dinner service, you couldn’t just make more on the fly and people would be SO disappointed. I was a chef that always tried to make my diners happy and this was one I couldn’t fix, and I hated disappointing the diners. But as a home cook? I don’t run out and this braised beef short rib recipe with creamy polenta NEVER disappoints.
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Why You’ll love Braised Beef Short Ribs
Slow cooking these Braised Beef Short Ribs for hours, they come out so tender and make the house smell amazing! These are great for dinner parties, you can make them the day ahead and heat them up! Yes… They are a bit time consuming, but they are 100% worth it… trust me. The creamy polenta is perfect for sopping up the sauce but you can swap it out for potato puree or whatever your heart desires.
Prep Like a Pro
Carmelize – Don’t rush this. It can be so easy to turn up the heat and try to get it over with, but the slow carmelization is the right way to do it and it tastes amazing. This is the base of your sauce and it is worth the 30 minutes!
Deglaze – When you pour the wine in, scrap the brown bits from the bottom. This will add to the taste and make clean up easier!
Overnight Marinate – Let these braised beef short ribs rest overnight and slowly reheat them on the stove top the next day. They get better the longer they sit. You will need to add more stock or wine to the sauce while reheating. Make the polenta right before.
Polenta – Don’t skip blending the polenta. Finer grains give you a silkier texture and is amazing when topped with the Braised Short Ribs.
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Substitutions
- Red Wine → You can use non-alcoholic wine instead. Giesen has a great selection! You can also use beef stock mixed with balsamic vinegar to taste.
- Dried Ancho Chile → Swap this for guajillo, California chilis, or even chipotle chili. Just make sure you are swapping it for dried chilies.
- Aleppo Pepper → The best sub for this is sweet paprika and cayanne (4:1 ratio).
- Polenta → These braised beef short ribs go great with the polenta, but mashed potatoes, herbed rice, risotto or butter noodles would be great also.
- Gruyere → You can use Parmigiano for the polenta instead of gruyere.
🔥Chef Nadia’s Tip🔥
Make sure you give your pan time to preheat properly. This is vital in making these braised short ribs!
The Perfect Pairings
To start off this recipe for delicious Braised Beef Short Ribs, a warm vanilla cinnamon London Mule will go perfect. A simple but delicious Butter Lettuce Salad and some Balsamic Green Beans is a great accompaniment. For dessert, one of my favs is a Berry Panna Cotta and it will end this meal nicely.
Braised Beef Short Ribs: Questions Answered
You can use non-alcoholic wine instead. Giesen has a great selection! You can also use beef stock mixed with balsamic vinegar to taste.
Yes! In fact, the sauce will only taste better the next day. You can make the short ribs the day before, store in the fridge, and when you’re ready, reheat them gently on the stove. Add more stock/wine to the sauce as needed. The creamy polenta should be made right before.
They really do add an incredible richness to the sauce. If you can’t find them or just don’t want to use them, you can skip it though. They add amazing flavor but they aren’t a deal breaker.
Braised Short Ribs Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 lb short rib, about 8 bones
- seasoned salt , to taste
- oil, for frying
- 2 bone marrow bones
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 4 shallots, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1½ tbsp white miso paste
- 1½ tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2½ sprigs rosemary
- ½ tsp nutmeg, fresh
- 1 chile ancho, large
- 1 tbsp aleppo pepper
- 1½ garlic cloves, you don't need to peel them
- black pepper , to taste
- 750 ml dry red wine, I like cabernet or syrah
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- chives , for topping, to taste
Polenta
- 1 cup yellow polenta
- 4½ cups stock , or water
- ⅓ cup gruyere, freshly grated
- salt and pepper , to taste
- ⅓ cup heavy cream , or milk
- 1 tbsp butter
Instructions
Short Ribs
- Preheat your oven to 350℉.
- Season the short ribs on all sides with seasoned salt. Add oil to an enameled cast iron pan and preheat on medium-high. Sear the short ribs on all sides and set aside.
- In that same pan, add a little more oil if needed and brown the bone marrows for 1-3 minutes on all sides. Remove.
- Lower the heat to medium and add sliced onions and shallots. Caramelize lightly for about 30 minutes. Add in the tomato paste, cook for another 3 minutes.
- Mix in the miso, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, rosemary, nutmeg, aleppo pepper, chile ancho, 1½ garlic cloves and pepper to taste. Place your short ribs and bone marrow to the pan and cover with ¾ bottle of wine (you will use the rest later so don't drink it 😉). Bring to a simmer.
- Cover and braise in the oven for 3 hours and 15 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for another 30-45 minutes, or until completely tender.
- Discard the rosemary sprigs, bone marrow and garlic. Take the short ribs out and set aside. With a spoon, remove as much excess fat from the braising liquid and you would like.
- Pour the braising liquid into a blender and blend until smooth. Add it back to pot with the remaining wine and simmer for 10 minutes. Finish it off with the 2 tbsp cream.
Polenta
- Add your polenta to a blender or food processor and pulse until it is extra fine.
- Add the stock to a pot and bring to a simmer. Whisk in the polentaand simmer covered for 5-10 minutes, until the liquid is fully absorbed and the polenta is tender. Add more liquid if it isn't tender enough.
- Once at the desired consistency, add the gruyere, salt, pepper and cream. Simmer on medium-low 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat and finish with butter.
- Lastly, serve with chives and that is it!
Serve
- To serve, add your polenta to a plate, place your short ribs on top of that and add your sauce all over. Sprinkle with chopped chives and enjoy!
Kitchen Cam
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
When are you supposed to add the balsamic and soy sauce? I don’t see that on the recipe, only on the ingredients list.
Hey Cheyenne, Great catch! I just went through and added it into the instructions. Thank you for catching that!