Scott's Short Ribs

I've been thinking about this recipe, I haven't made these ribs in a very long time. The first time I made them, we were having dinner for the very first time with some dear friends (the first time our families had ever met!) They were delicious! I used a Cotes du Rhone wine as recommended, and when we bought a couple bottles of Cotes du Rhone from Trader Joe's in Tucson, you now know exactly what I was thinking about!

I will be making these again very very soon. Picture then!

The recipe comes from Barefoot Contessa Family Style, one of my favorite cookbooks.

Scott's Short Ribs
Serves 6

Scott Bieber is the wonderful chef at Eli's Manhattan restaurant in New York City. He cooks earthy food that brings out the essence of the ingredients, such as these short ribs. You can make them well in advance and reheat them before dinner. I use a reasonably priced Cotes du Rhone wine.

6 beef short ribs, trimmed of fat
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion (2 onions)
4 cups large-diced celery (6 large stalks)
2 carrots, peeled and large-diced
1 small fennel, fronds, stem and core removed, large-diced
1 leek, cleaned and large-diced, white part only
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 750-ml bottle burgundy or other dry red wine
Fresh rosemary sprigs
Fresh thyme sprigs
6 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the short ribs on a sheet pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven and add the onion, celery, carrots, fennel and leek and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Pour the wine over the vegetables, bring to a boil and cook over high heat until the liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Tie the rosemary and thyme together with kitchen twine and add to the pot.

Place the roasted ribs on top of the vegetables in the Dutch oven and add the beef stock and brown sugar. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Cover the Dutch oven and bake for 2 hours or until the meat is very tender.

Carefully remove the short ribs from the pot and set aside. Discard the herbs and skim the excess fat. Cook the vegetables and sauce over medium heat for 20 minutes, until reduced. Put the ribs back into the pot and heat through. Serve with the vegetables and sauce.