Recipe: Braised Short Ribs

One of my favorite dishes is Braised Short Ribs and this recipe is one that I've made repeatedly. When cooked low and slow, the meat should fall off the bone. Braised Short Ribs are rich, deep, tender, and so flavorful. My only gripe with it though is how labor intensive the entire cooking process is. The prep is not that bad but the cooking time is extensive and requires some babysitting while it's in the oven. After getting home from work, I can't cook it in one go unless I want to stay up all night. I keep in mind when I plan on eating it and spread out the steps over three days. I also never really make short ribs just for myself but always for a guest. However it's difficult to cook for a crowd because the French oven is only so large and while the meat shrinks down significantly, the bones take up a lot of oven space.

Braised Short Ribs
Inspired by Food & Wine and Simply Recipes
Serves 6

Ingredients
2 tbsp canola oil
12 beef short ribs, bone-in
salt and pepper
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
3 celery ribs, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, thickly sliced
1 750-ml bottle dry red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon
4 thyme sprigs
3 cup chicken stock

Instructions
In a large French oven, heat the oil. Season the ribs with salt and pepper. Add them to the French oven and cook over medium heat, turning once, until browned and crusty. Transfer ribs to a plate.
Add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic to the French oven and cook over low heat until soft and lightly browned. Add the wine and thyme and bring to a boil over high heat. Pour the marinade over the ribs or add the ribs back into the French oven. Let cool and refrigerate overnight, turning the ribs once.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Add the chicken stock to French oven and bring to boil. Cover and cook in the lower third of the oven for 1½ hours, until the meat is tender but not falling apart. Uncover and braise for 45 minutes longer, turning the ribs once or twice, until the sauce is reduced by about half and the meat is very tender.
Allow the ribs to cool in the liquid, then cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, remove the excess fat that has solidified at the top from overnight chilling. Cook the ribs over medium heat, uncovered, until the liquid has reduced by ¾ths. Continue to cook, spooning the sauce over the ribs, until the sauce is thick and ribs glazed. Serve over rice.