Beef Short Ribs in Red Wine with Gremolata
Recipe Mari Loewen, Food Styling Carol Dudar, Photography Stacey Brandford
These Beef Short Ribs in Red Wine with Gremolata are pure joy. Comforting, rich and satisfying, these fall-of-the bone ribs take the guesswork out of dinner.
They are browned then gently simmered for 3 hours with onions and carrots in a red wine and pancetta-spiked tomato sauce. You can taste the comfort.
The game-changer is fresh gremolata. It’s a vibrant mix of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, minced garlic and lemon zest and it brightens the ribs without taking away any richness.
Ingredients
6 tablespoons (90ml) extra-virgin olive oil
6 pounds (2.7kg) bone-in short ribs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 yellow onions, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch (6mm) dice
5 ounces (140g) pancetta, cut into ¼-inch (6mm) dice
5 cups (1.2L) red wine
3 cups (720g) canned whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, rough chopped
Classic Gremolata
¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, very finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely minced
Zest of 1 lemon, very finely grated
For gremolata, mix all ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside and chill.
For short ribs, warm the olive oil in Dutch oven over high heat until nearly smoking. Season the short ribs liberally with salt and pepper. Working in batches, add the short ribs to the pan and sear until well browned on all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Pour off any excess fat, leaving a small amount in the pot for the vegetables.
Add the onions, carrots, and pancetta to same pot, turn down the heat to medium-high, and cook until the vegetables are light brown and starting to soften, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Return the short ribs to the pot and add the wine and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the meat is very tender, about 2 ½ to 3 hours. Let cool in the pot.
Note: I skim the layer of chilled fat off the top of the cooled short ribs. Then reheat to serve.
