Braised Short Ribs on Creamy Yellow Polenta

Snow is on the ground, the temperatures are below freezing; time for short ribs.


Short ribs are rather inexpensive and if you prepare them correctly you can serve a fabulous inexpensive dinner with them.


I start out with pancetta. This gives the dish a deep robust flavor. You could use bacon too.


Dice the pancetta into small pieces.


Sprinkle the ribs with salt and pepper.


Coat them on all sides with flour.


Let them sit until they are at room temperature.


Meanwhile, saute' the pancetta in a heavy pot.


Remove the crisp pancetta and leave the grease.


You might need to add a bit of olive oil too. Brown the ribs on all sides until they have a crisp brown crust.


Set them aside.


Add about 5 sliced leeks to the pot.


Add 5 diced carrots.


After the vegetables have softened, add 2 cups of red wine.


Stir it around, scraping the bottom to pick up all the bits on the bottom of the pot.


Add 2 cups of beef stock.


Add several tablespoons of beef demi-glace. If you don't have this you can add beef bouillon but watch your salt.


Add fresh rosemary and fresh thyme.


Time to pull out my frozen tomato paste.


Add several tablespoons of the paste to the sauce.



Throw in the cooked pancetta.


Place the ribs back in the pot.


Sink them down into the liquid.


Cover and bake at 325 for about 4 hours. The meat should be falling off the bones. I served mine with polenta this time but they can be served with mashed potatoes or broad noodles. They are also delicious served with a sprinkling of blue cheese over the top.



Comments

Anonymous said…
That looks so tasty! I do hope I´ll get my appetite back soon :-)

Have a great day!
Christer.
Jennifer said…
Looks delicious, I just love the recipes you share and how you show them made step by step. Thank you!
Perfect dish for this cold, cold weather. I just put short ribs on my grocery list for tomorrow. Should have shopped today but I have to make another "Cranberry Orange Cornmeal Cake. Yep, I'm on my way to heaven.
brokenteepee said…
Mmm, I love short ribs. I have a recipe for an Asian inspired dish that takes 5 days once you get through with the marinating and the cooking and the resting but it is worth every minute of the wait.

I am sure you are doing the goat dance of joy with snow on the ground.
TMCPhoto said…
my parents gifted us with a few packages of short ribs from one of their cows. We tried bbq this summer but this looks like it would be just as good if not better.
This is a heartwarming recipe. Easy, the oven does most of the work. :)

Me loves polenta!

Thanks.

xoxo to "Teddy Tinsel Baby".
Robin Larkspur said…
I have never cooked short ribs..this looks very tasty, and aromatic. I think my husband would be very happy with this dish. Gonna make up a shopping list!!
Mystica said…
I'd like to try this out.
Well, I did a boo-boo and sent my comment before it was finished. grrrrrrrrr.

Anyway, bells sound of happiness to me. The tiny tinkling ones, fairies passing from here to there.

Beautiful music.

Thank you.
Ann said…
darn those look delicious.
BelladonnasJoy said…
I've never used polenta before but it sure looks good with these yummy ribs. I love ribs. We can get pork ribs but it's harder to find beef ribs. Thanks for sharing your great recipes.
I bought all the girls and my daughters recipe books ...so I could put your recipes in them.. am I smart or WHAT, Joyce! I have to post a picture of them...but...wait..they all read my blog..so I guess that's out! Darn!
SpinMeAYarn said…
wow, what a recipe, that looks delicious, and I really like the idea of cooking the meat for so long, it makes the meat so tender I bet and the sauce so tasty...
yum....
regards
liz
Shai Williams said…
Oh my goodness, that looks so yummy! Thanks for sharing the recipe