Red Wine–Braised Beef Short Ribs Recipe

A long and slow traditional braise leads to perfect beef short ribs while subtle sauce-making tricks deliver the ultimate in red wine sauces.

By
Daniel Gritzer
Daniel Gritzer
Daniel Gritzer
Senior Culinary Director
Daniel joined the Serious Eats culinary team in 2014 and writes recipes, equipment reviews, articles on cooking techniques. Prior to that he was a food editor at Food & Wine magazine, and the staff writer for Time Out New York's restaurant and bars section.
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Updated Apr. 17, 2020
Red Wine-Braised Beef Short Ribs

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Why It Works

  • A low oven temperature cooks the beef gently, resulting in more tender and juicy meat.
  • Adding a reduced port wine syrup to the sauce deepens its wine flavor while adding a sweetness that balances the braising liquid's harsh edges.
  • A gelatin-rich stock also helps give the finished sauce that ideal lip-sticking viscosity.

This recipe is designed to give you the kind of red wine–braised beef short ribs you'd be served at a good restaurant, featuring fork-tender meat that's glazed in a shiny, deeply wine-flavored sauce. The addition of reduced port wine is a critical step, enhancing the sauce's deep wine flavor while balancing out the dry red wine's sharper acidic and tannic edges. Serve these with mashed potatoes, polenta, or some good crusty bread. You could even remove the bones and shred the beef into the finished sauce to create an absolutely killer sauce for fresh tagliatelle or pappardelle pasta.

Recipe Facts

5

(5)

Cook: 5 hrs
Active: 2 hrs
Total: 5 hrs
Serves: 4 servings

Rate & Comment

Ingredients

  • 5 pounds (2.3kg) beef short ribs (see note)

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 1 tablespoon (15ml) vegetable or other neutral oil

  • 2 celery ribs (about 3 1/2 ounces; 100g each), cut into 1/2-inch dice

  • 2 large carrots (about 8 ounces; 225g each), cut into 1/2-inch dice

  • 1 large (14-ounce; 400g) yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch dice

  • 5 medium cloves garlic, smashed

  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) tomato paste

  • 1 (750ml) bottle dry red wine

  • 1 quart (940ml) good-quality brown beef stock, brown chicken stock, white chicken stock, or store-bought chicken stock (see note)

  • 1 packet unflavored gelatin, such as Knox (2 1/2 teaspoons; 10g), only if using store-bought stock

  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 1 (750ml) bottle ruby port wine

  • Slurry made from 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 teaspoon water (optional)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 300°F (150°C). Season short ribs all over with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Working in batches, add short ribs and brown on all sides, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer browned short ribs to a platter and repeat with remaining short ribs.

    Searing short ribs in an enamel cast iron Dutch oven.

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  2. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the Dutch oven. Return to the heat and add celery, carrot, onion, and garlic. Cook, stirring, until browned, about 6 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 minute longer; lower heat at any point if the contents of the pot threaten to burn.

    Mirepoix cooking in the bottom of an enamel cast iron Dutch oven.

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  3. Add dry red wine, scraping up any browned bits from bottom and sides of pot. Bring to a simmer. Add stock; if using store-bought stock, place it in a large bowl first and sprinkle all over with gelatin until bloomed, then add to Dutch oven.

    Red wine braised short ribs

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  4. Return short ribs to pot along with any accumulated juices, nestling them into braising liquids. Add thyme and bay leaves, cover partially, then transfer to oven, and cook until beef is fork-tender, 2 to 3 hours.

    Red wine braised short ribs

    Serious Eats

  5. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring port to a very gentle simmer, regulating heat to maintain that simmer. Cook, uncovered, and reduce until syrupy, about 1 hour; should yield about 1/2 cup (120ml) in volume. Set aside.

  6. Carefully remove short ribs from pot and transfer to a clean platter (they will be very tender, so the bones may slip out; try to hold them together as you transfer them). Tent with foil.

  7. Skim accumulated fat from surface of braising liquid and discard. Strain braising liquid through a fine-mesh strainer set over a large heatproof bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible.

  8. Rinse out Dutch oven, then return strained braising liquid to it. Return to heat and bring to a gentle simmer, adjusting heat to maintain simmer. Simmer until braising liquid is reduced to 2 cups, about 1 hour; skim any foam that accumulates on the surface as needed. Add port wine reduction to braising liquid.

    adding port wine reduction to a Dutch oven with braising liquid

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  9. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and leave a trail when you drag your finger through it. If it's still a little thin, whisk in the cornstarch slurry and bring to a simmer until thickened slightly.

  10. Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Return short ribs to Dutch oven, spooning the sauce all over and around them to glaze and rewarm. Serve.

    Red wine braised short ribs in an enamel cast iron Dutch oven.

    Serious Eats

Special Equipment

Dutch oven

Notes

You can use English-cut or flanken-cut short ribs for this recipe. English-cut short ribs are cut such that one rib bone runs along the length of each portion; flanken-cut ribs slice across the ribs so that each piece has cross-sections of several rib bones in it. If using English-cut short ribs, try to find ones that are about 4 inches each in length. If using flanken-cut, make sure that each slab is about two inches thick (flanken-cut short ribs often come in thinner slabs). You can divide flanken-cut ribs between the bones so that you have more manageable pieces to work with. In all cases, look for well-marbled short ribs with a nice meaty portion on each (at least 1 1/2 inches of meat above the bones).

A good homemade stock will set like jelly when refrigerated; this natural gelatin helps give the sauce its final consistency; if you don't have good homemade stock, add 1 packet unflavored gelatin per recipe instructions.

Make-Ahead and Storage

The braised beef short ribs can be refrigerated in their finished sauce in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat gently before serving.

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
2086 Calories
135g Fat
38g Carbs
154g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 2086
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 135g 173%
Saturated Fat 58g 291%
Cholesterol 574mg 191%
Sodium 1498mg 65%
Total Carbohydrate 38g 14%
Dietary Fiber 7g 25%
Total Sugars 15g
Protein 154g
Vitamin C 17mg 83%
Calcium 203mg 16%
Iron 18mg 101%
Potassium 2455mg 52%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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