Balthazar's Braised Beef Ribs

Total Time: 5 hrs Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 4 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 6 short rib of beef (5 to 7 pounds)
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 6 sprigs thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 stalk celery, halved
• 3 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons fresh coarse ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 4 shallots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup ruby port
• 4 cups full-bodied wine, such as cabernet sauvignon
• 6 cups veal stock (veal stock is really best but you can substitute good homemade beef stock)

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 325°f
• 2 bind each rib with cotton kitchen twine. place the rosemary, thyme, and bay leaf between the two celery halves and bind with kitchen twine.
• 3 season the short ribs with 2 teaspoons of the salt and the pepper.
• 4 heat the oil in a large dutch oven over a high flame until it smokes.
• 5 in two batches, brown the short ribs well on both sides, about 3 minutes per side, pouring off all but 3 tablespoons of oil between batches.
• 6 remove the ribs and set aside when done.
• 7 lower the flame to medium, and add the carrots, onion, shallots, and garlic to the pot and saute for 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and light brown.
• 8 stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes.
• 9 add the flour and stir well to combine. add the port, red wine, and the celery-herb bundle.
• 10 raise the flame to high and cook until the liquid is reduced by a third, about 20 minutes.
• 11 return the ribs to the pot (they will stack into two layers).
• 12 add the stock and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt; if the stock doesn’t cover the ribs by at least 1 inch, add water up to that level.
• 13 bring to a gentle simmer, cover, transfer to the preheated oven, and cook for 3 hours. visit the pot occasionally and stir the ribs, bringing the ones on the bottom up to the top -- they’re done when the meat is fork tender and falling off the bone.
• 14 transfer the ribs to a large platter and remove the strings.
• 15 skim any fat from the surface of the sauce, and then strain through a sieve into a medium saucepan.
• 16 discard the solids.
• 17 over medium heat, bring the sauce to a strong simmer and reduce the liquid until slightly less then half (4 cups) remains, about 1 hour.
• 18 return the ribs to the pot, simmer for 10 minutes to reheat, and serve.