Braised Short Ribs

So I my kitchen and I weren't on speaking terms for about a month - I was busy and the stove had developed a rattle so I left it alone in hopes it would heal (it didn't and I still need to call the repair man).  However I needed to cook so the challenge today was Short Ribs.  I used Anne Burrell's recipe from Food Network, if you don't watch her show they even have a clip of how to do this online which helped!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/braised-short-ribs-recipe/index.html

Here's the recipe:

• 6 bone-in short ribs (about 5 3/4 pounds)
• Kosher salt
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large Spanish onion, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 ribs celery, cut into 1/2-inch pieces  ( I used 5 pieces)
• 2 carrots, peeled, cut in 1/2 lengthwise, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces  (I used 5 medium ones)
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 1/2 cups tomato paste
• 2 to 3 cups hearty red wine  (I used 3 cups)
• 2 cups water
• 1 bunch fresh thyme, tied with kitchen string
• 2 bay leaves

Directions

Season each short rib generously with salt. Coat a pot large enough to accommodate all the meat and vegetables with olive oil and bring to a high heat. Add the short ribs to the pan and brown very well, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Do not overcrowd pan. Cook in batches, if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  (Lesson learned: Do not preheat oven until veggies are in the pan)

While the short ribs are browning, puree all the vegetables and garlic in the food processor until it forms a coarse paste (I apparently didn't read the directions because I used a 5 celery stalks & 5 carrots! but I liked the results!). When the short ribs are very brown on all sides, remove them from the pan. Drain the fat, coat the bottom of same pan with fresh oil and add the pureed vegetables. Season the vegetables generously with salt and brown until they are very dark and a crud has formed on the bottom of the pan, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Scrape the crud and let it reform. Scrape the crud again and add the tomato paste. Brown the tomato paste for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan. Lower the heat if things start to burn. Reduce the mixture by half.

(I missed the salt step...which is probably why my veggies never went to full crud stage - (also I had double that was needed)  but they did brown- eventually but again...I actually liked my results)

Return the short ribs to the pan and add 2 cups water or until the water has just about covered the meat. Add the thyme bundle and bay leaves (Well because my veggies never went full crud I only needed 1 cup to start).

Cover the pan and place in the preheated oven for 3 hours. Check periodically during the cooking process and add more water, if needed (Def needed another cup halfway through).

Turn the ribs over halfway through the cooking time. Remove the lid during the last 20 minutes (check after 2 hours & 10 minutes...mine was done at 2 hrs at 45 and I forgot to remove the lid & I had browning occurring)  of cooking to let things get nice and brown and to let the sauce reduce. When done the meat should be very tender but not falling apart (Whoops!  Keep an eye on it at the end- this part happened really quick!). Serve with the braising liquid.

So this was a harder recipe and I didn't really follow the directions very well but it still turned out really tasty so don't be afraid to try it!