I am happy to give away tricks of the trade when it comes to food and drink, hence the blog, but really to tell folks how easy it is to create delicious dishes on your own. Last night, my short ribs were so easy, breezy, and amazing. I started with a nice pack of boneless short ribs. You can get the bone in kind, I just like the simplicity of no bone to think about.
First, get your mire poix (celery, carrots, onions chopped up) going in the braising pot you’ll be using. 
Then rub the short ribs in your favorite seasoning. I used a truffle rub from Williams Sonoma that’s just heavenly and a little bit of a blend that has some paprika, chili, garlic, and pepper. Then sear each side in a pan to lock in the first flavor layer.
I got a good browning on each side while the mire poix simmered and sweat. I added the browned short ribs into the pot and began layering in the braising liquids.
I added one can of tomato sauce and a solid pour (bout a cup) of a chocolate red wine for the braising liquid. You can do anything here – red wine, dark beer, some people use cherry cola or Dr. Pepper.
You don’t want to cover the meat, it’ll end up with way too much liquid, just like half to three quarters of the way up to cover the meat is good. I covered and let it go on a low light, stirring and turning the meat occasionally for about an hour and a half. Then I added in some seasonings to taste. A little bit of this, a little bit of that. I used some vanilla salt, some Mexican mole seasoning, and just a little bit of vanilla whiskey. Be creative here, I authorize you! Stir, taste, let braise continue for about another hour. To test whether you’ve adequately “broken” the meat, just see if it pulls apart easily. If so, it’s ready!!
Mmmm, savory smells abound in the kitchen! Takes about 3 hours for the braising – last time I used the Instapot and it took half that time, but I just felt like going back to basics last night. And damn was it great!! I roasted some brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, radishes, and zucchini for a roasted veggie medley to go along side.
Then added on more braising sauce for some extra mmmmmmmmm.
So delish and so easy!!! Paired it with a decadent dark bourbon barrel aged stout by Goose Island, their Bourbon County Vanilla. Found it at a local liquor store on tap where they put it into giant cans for us!! What a treat!!
Eat, Drink, and Go! 