Author Notes
my mom had a bottle of some well gifted chocolate balsamic vinegar in the fridge and we thought they'd be a beautiful addition to a braised short ribs recipe i adapted from Alison Ladman's Balsamic Braised Shortribs from the Seattle Food & Wine Magazine. I have used her recipe a few times and only changed a few small variables. These short ribs are delicious w/ cheesey polenta or creamy mashed potatoes. I chose to pair them w/ some parmigiano smashed potatoes and butter roasted parsnips & carrots. —eyeoftheavocado
Ingredients
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1.5 tablespoons
vegetable or canola oil
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9
bone in short ribs (about 4.5 lbs)
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3
leeks (white parts only), halved, washed, rough chopped
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2
medium yellow onions, quartered
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3
carrots, peeled & rough chopped
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3
stalks celery, rough chopped
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3
cloves garlic, smashed, green shoot removed
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3/4 teaspoon
red crushed pepper
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1.5 teaspoons
salt
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3/4 teaspoon
black pepper, freshly ground
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3 tablespoons
tomato paste
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1.5 tablespoons
dijon mustard
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4.5 sprigs
fresh rosemary
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1/2 cup
balsamic vinegar
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1/4 cup
chocolate balsamic vinegar
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1/4 + 1/8 cups
packed golden brown sugar
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1.5 quarts
beef stock, preferably home-made w/ gelatin
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1/4 cup
red wine
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1/4 cup
whole milk (optional)
Directions
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot such as a Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium. Liberally salt your short ribs. Working in batches so as not to crowd the pan, sear the short ribs for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until well browned. Transfer the short ribs to a plate.
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While the short ribs are browning, puree 1/2 the vegetables and garlic in the food processor until it forms a paste. add puree to bowl and puree the second 1/2 of the vegetables, strain some of the onion water out of the vegetables. When the short ribs are very brown on all sides, remove them from the pan. Drain the fat, (otherwise you will have a huge fat oily layer on top of your short ribs). Coat the bottom of same pan with fresh oil and add the pureed vegetables. Season the vegetables generously with salt and brown until they are very dark and a crud has formed on the bottom of the pan, approximately 12-15 minutes, make sure to watch the pan as it will burn if you walk away. Scrape the crud and let it reform. Scrape the crud again and add the tomato paste. Add the red pepper flakes, Brown the tomato paste for 4 to 5 minutes.
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Add the Dijon mustard, rosemary sprigs, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Return the short ribs to the pot, then add the beef stock. Bring the mixture up to a low simmer and cover.
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Place in the preheated 375 degree oven for 2.25 hours, flipping the ribs half way through the 2.25 hours. remove lid after the 2.25 hours and cook for another 45 mins in the oven to reduce the cooking liquid.
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Carefully transfer the meat to a plate. Cover with foil and a couple kitchen towels to keep warm. Bring the liquid to a low simmer on the stovetop and using an immersion blender carefully blend into a finer consistency. using a wooden spoon, add wine and bring up the heat to let it cook off, I used wine to thin the sauce a bit and add a little more flavor but water will do. If you feel like the sauce could use a little more texture add some whole milk or half and half.
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Add the ribs back to the gravy and serve. The short ribs can be held at a low low simmer for up to an hour, lidded, before serving. serve atop your favorite creamy starchy comfort food.
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