Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
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Savor the fork-tender goodness of braised short ribs—the ultimate comfort food for a chilly evening.
Searching for that perfect comforting dish for chilly winter nights or festive gatherings? Look no further than these wine-braised short ribs. Similar in technique and flavor to my ever-popular beef stew and goulash, this dish starts by searing the short ribs before slow-braising them to fork-tender perfection in a rich, flavorful red wine sauce. Just a little heads-up—short ribs require a few hours in the oven to reach that melt-in-your-mouth tenderness, so be sure to plan ahead. Serve them over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or creamy polenta for a meal guaranteed to fill your home with warmth and bring smiles to everyone at your table.
Table of Contents
“Easily one of the best beef meals I’ve had in ages.”
What You’ll Need To Make Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
- Boneless short ribs: The star of the dish, these ribs become incredibly tender and flavorful after slow braising. If you can’t find boneless ribs, you can substitute 6 to 7 pounds of bone-in short ribs—the meat will fall off the bone as it cooks.
- Onions and garlic: These aromatics that add depth and complexity to the sauce.
- Tomato paste: Concentrates the sauce’s flavor, adding richness and a hint of sweetness.
- All-purpose flour: Thickens the braising liquid to make a velvety sauce.
- Red wine: Adds robust, complex flavors to the braising liquid.
- Beef broth: Adds savory depth to the braising liquid and enhances the meaty flavors of the dish.
- Bay leaf and fresh thyme: These herbs add layers of flavor to the sauce.
- Carrots: Add a touch of sweetness and color.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by trimming all excess fat off of the exterior of the short ribs (although leave the marbling that goes throughout the meat alone), otherwise, your sauce will be greasy. It’s also a good idea to remove any silver skin, which is the thin, white/silvery membrane on the surface of the meat.
Season the short ribs all over with salt and pepper.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or oven-safe pot over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the short ribs and cook, without moving, until well browned on one side only, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the beef to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining tablespoon of oil and short ribs.
Browning the beef adds flavor. It may seem strange to brown one side only, but it saves a lot of time and does the job just as well.
Pour off all but one tablespoon of fat, return the pot to the stove, and reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. (If the onions begin to darken too quickly, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to the pan.)
Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes more.
Add the tomato paste.
Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
Add the flour.
Cook, stirring constantly, until fully absorbed by the onion-tomato mixture, about 1 minute.
Add the wine, broth, sugar, bay leaf and thyme sprigs.
Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen browned bits.
Add the short ribs and any accumulated juices to the pot and return to a boil.
Cover the pot with a lid, transfer to the oven, and cook for 2 hours. Carefully remove the pot from the oven. Stir in the carrots.
Cover and return the pot to the oven and cook 45 to 60 minutes more, or until the carrots and meat are tender. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs. Skim any grease off the surface of the sauce, if necessary. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
Spoon the short ribs and sauce into bowls over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or creamy polenta.
Frequently Asked Questions
When cooking with wine, I recommend using a bottle that’s inexpensive but still good enough to drink. A Pinot Noir or Merlot in the $8 to $12 range is ideal.
Yes, making the short ribs a day or two ahead can actually enhance their flavor. After cooking and cooling, store the short ribs in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Reheat, covered, over medium-low heat on the stovetop or in a 325°F-oven until warmed through.
Yes, they freeze exceptionally well. After cooking and cooling, transfer the ribs and their sauce into airtight freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat slowly on the stove or in the oven, covered, until heated through.
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Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
Savor the fork-tender goodness of braised short ribs—the ultimate comfort food for a chilly evening.
Ingredients
- 4 pounds boneless short ribs, trimmed of excess fat and silver skin, cut into 3-in chunks (see note)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1½ tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2⅓ cups red wine (see note)
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 bay leaf
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 large carrots, sliced ½-in-thick diagonally
Instructions
- Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 325°F. Season the short ribs all over with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or oven-safe pot over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the short ribs and cook, without moving, until well browned on one side only, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the beef to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining tablespoon of oil and short ribs. (Note: Browning the beef adds flavor. It might seem odd to brown on one side only but I find that it saves time and does the job just as well.)
- Pour off all but one tablespoon of fat, return the pot to the stove, and reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. (If the onions begin to darken too quickly, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to the pan.) Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes more. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until fully absorbed by the onion-tomato mixture, about 1 minute.
- Add the wine, broth, sugar, bay leaf and thyme sprigs; increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen browned bits. Add the short ribs and any accumulated juices to the pot and return to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, transfer to the oven, and cook for 2 hours.
- Carefully remove the pot from the oven. Stir in the carrots. Cover and return the pot to the oven and cook 45 to 60 minutes more, or until the carrots and meat are tender. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs. Skim any grease off the surface of the sauce, if necessary. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Spoon the short ribs and sauce into bowls over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or creamy polenta.
- Note: It's very important to trim all excess fat off of the exterior of the short ribs (although leave the marbling that goes throughout the meat alone), otherwise your sauce will be greasy. It's also a good idea to remove any silver skin, which is the thin, white/silvery membrane on the surface of the meat.
- Note: In selecting wine for this recipe, look for an inexpensive bottle that's still good enough to drink: a Pinot Noir or Merlot in the $8 - $12 range would be ideal.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The short ribs can be made up to 2 days ahead of time. Reheat, covered, over medium-low heat on the stovetop or in a 325°F oven.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The short ribs can be frozen for up to 3 months. Before serving, defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours and then reheat, covered, over medium-low heat on the stovetop or in a 325°F oven.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 680
- Fat: 47 g
- Saturated fat: 19 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 41 g
- Sodium: 740 mg
- Cholesterol: 166 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Ridiculously delicious. Melt-in-your-mouth tender, flavorful, comforting, yet elegant. Third time making it (by popular request), and every time husband raves over how good it is. The key is mise en place: cut, dice, measure all the ingredients in advance. The rest will be a breeze. And then chill with a glass of that red wine and a book for 3 hours (don’t forget to add carrots after 2 hrs). “Hey, what smells SO good?!”
PS If you follow each recipe on this blog exactly, you’ll come out a Michelin-star chef. Every. Single. Time. Magic!
My cousin in Arkansas told me about this blog. Her comment was “if I’m having guests over, I don’t hesitate to make one of her recipes if even for the first time because everything we’ve made is nothing short of fabulous “. So happy to find these recipes and Jenn’s thoughtful blog. So easy to maneuver through all the yums! Thank you Jenn for adding to my love for cooking!
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Hi Jenn,
Could you OR would you do these in a crock pot? If so, brown and then crock I would assume, correct? Instructions would be appreciated.
Thank you
Hi Lori, You can use a slow cooker but you’ll still need to sear the beef and cook the onion mixture on the stovetop. I’d make the recipe up to the point that it goes into the oven, then transfer the contents of the pot (and the carrots) to a slow cooker and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or until the meat is tender. Hope that helps and that you enjoy!
I would like to make this for Rosh Hashannah dinner in a few weeks. QQ….my sister despises the taste of cooked onions, is it possible to make this without? She literally won’t touch it if she senses any cooked onions! Also, I don’t have a dutch oven, would a regular pot work? Alternatively I do have a slow cooker that sears so that might work?
Thanks again!
Hi Veronika, Onions definitely add a lot of flavor to this. While I haven’t used it, could you get away with using onion powder? Also, check out this post which gives suggestions for some potential alternatives to onions. And, yes, a regular pot would definitely work as long as it’s oven-safe. Hope that helps!
I found this recipe so easy to follow and oh my gosh the smell from the oven while it cooked was wonderful. I made it during the week, but I think this would be a wonderful special occasion meal. It would also be a stress free dinner for company!!!
Loved it. Will make again.
Oh my gosh, this is delicious! I had never made short ribs before, and was looking for a good recipe. Found this one, made it, and I don’t think I’ll ever make them any other way. It was very easy to make, and the result was so good, my mouth did not want to stop eating. I highly recommend it. Thank you, Jenn.
I enjoy every recipe I have made from your site.
I made this for a small dinner party and it made me look like God’s gift to the planet. My partner who never cares for leftovers wasnt particulatly amused when I offered them to take lefotvers home (and there wasnt much believe me). I have been playing around with short ribs cooking techniques lately and have tried sous viding them for 48 hours too. In my opinion braising in a crockpot using your recipes has produced the best results.
Thanks Jenn ! I am already being requested to make this again (two days later).
Hi, Jenn. I want you to know how much I rely on your recipes. I’ve been cooking for over 50 years and because of you I’m getting out of my comfort zone. I’m making your new fresh asparagus salad tomorrow to go with TriTip and my smashed potatoes. Tonight I’m having your red wine short ribs…love the little extra tips I find in you recipes, i.e. blending the flour into the onions and tomato paste. My very favorite recipe is your chocolate peanut butter torte. Wow. Im known as the “cook” in our over 55 community and I give your website info to everyone…with you’re easy to follow recipes there is no reason for anyone not to make the effort of home cooked meals. Oh, by the way, your turkey meatballs (I used low fat ground beef) were such a hit my 90 year old neighbor exclaimed they were the best meatballs he’s ever had. Thanks Jenn…I’m so glad I found you! Yes, I bought your book, but I find your website the best thing for me. ❌⭕️❌⭕️
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Absolutely love this dish. I added a couple more bay leaves. Love their flavor. Good wine is important. Freezing half for next time!! Thanks for great recipe!
My family loved this recipe! It feeds a crowd so easily and it’s definitely a crowd pleaser. The whole meal can be made earlier in the day, along with the salad — the only thing I had to do at the last minute was mash the potatoes. I doubled the recipe and fed 15 easily. Thank you for this favorite recipe!
I need to cook this for eight people. How did you fit all the ingredients for fifteen people into you pot?
My husband and I love Jenn’s recipe for Red Wine Braised Short Ribs. I have made it several times serving it with pappardelle pasta. Sooo delicious!! I also have made a Shepherds pie by adding peas and corn to the left overs and placing in a shallow casserole and topping it with mashed potatoes. Jenn’s recipe is the only one I will use for short ribs.