Braised Short Ribs ProvenÇal Recipes

PROVENçAL SHORT RIBS WITH OLIVES AND HERBS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F with rack in lower third.
• Stir together flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Pat ribs dry and lightly dredge in flour mixture, knocking off excess.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wide 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Brown ribs in 3 batches, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer as browned to a platter. Discard fat from pot.
• Cook onions, carrots, and celery in remaining 2 tablespoons oil with 1/2 teaspoon salt over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until just softened and beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add garlic and herbs and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is softened and fragrant, 2 minutes.
• Add wine and boil until reduced by half, about 8 minutes, then stir in broth, tomatoes with juice, and vinegar and bring to a simmer.
• Return ribs to pot. Cover with the lid, then place in oven, and braise until ribs are fork-tender, 3 to 3 1/4 hours.
• Transfer ribs with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Let cooking liquid stand briefly, then skim fat from top. Stir in olives. Adjust seasoning to taste, if necessary.
• Return meat to pot. Grate zest from orange over top just before serving.

SHORT RIBS PROVENçALE

Steps:

• 1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 300°F.
• 2. Heat the oil in a large (at least 6-quart) Dutch oven or flameproof casserole over medium-high heat. Season the short ribs with the salt and pepper. In batches, without crowding, add the short ribs to the pot and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the ribs to a platter.
• 3. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pot. Add the onion, chopped carrot, and celery to the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, herbes de Provence, and flour and stir until the garlic gives off its aroma, about 1 minute. Stir in the wine and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add the broth, tomatoes, and bay leaf. Return the short ribs, and any juices, to the pot. Add cold water as needed to barely reach the top of the ribs and bring to a boil over high heat.
• 4. Cover tightly, transfer to the oven, and bake, stirring occasionally to change the position of the ribs, until the meat is falling-off-the-bone tender, about 2 1/2 hours. During the last 15 minutes, add the baby carrots.
• 5. Transfer the short ribs to a deep serving platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Skim off the fat from the surface of the cooking liquid, and discard the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is reduced to a sauce consistency, about 10 minutes (the exact time depends on the size of the pot). Add the olives and cook to heat them through, about 3 minutes. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
• 6. Spoon the sauce with the carrots over the ribs, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve hot.

SLOW COOKER BRAISED PROVENCAL SHORT RIBS

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan set at medium high heat, saute the onions, carrots and garlic in one tablespoons (15ml) olive oil until soft.
• Transfer to a slow cooker.
• Add remaining olive oil to the skillet and brown the ribs on both sides.
• Place the ribs in the slow cooker.
• Add the 1 can of plum tomatoes into the slow cooker.
• In a small bowl, stir together the broth, wine, flour, thyme, and bay leaf.
• Pour into the hot skillet, stir to scrape up any brown bits from the bottom and then pour into the slow cooker, cover and cook on high for 5 hours or until ribs are very tender.
• Discard the bay leaf.
• Serve with rice or mashed potatoes.

SHORT RIBS PROVENçALE WITH CRèME FRAîCHE MASHED POTATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper. Working in batches, add ribs to pot and brown well, turning often, about 8 minutes per batch. Using tongs, transfer ribs to large bowl.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings from pot or add oil as necessary to measure 2 tablespoons. Add onion, chopped carrot, and celery and cook over medium-low heat until vegetables are soft, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, flour, and herbes de Provence; stir 1 minute. Add wine and 2 cups broth; bring to boil over high heat, scraping up browned bits. Add tomatoes with juices and bay leaf. Return ribs and any accumulated juices to pot. If necessary, add enough water to pot to barely cover ribs. Bring to boil.
• Cover pot tightly and transfer to oven. Bake until ribs are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 2 hours 15 minutes. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool slightly, then refrigerate uncovered until cold. Cover and keep refrigerated. Bring to simmer before continuing.)
• Add remaining 1/2 cup broth, peeled baby carrots, and Niçois olives to pot; press carrots gently to submerge. Cover, return to oven and continue cooking at 350°F until carrots are tender, about 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Transfer short ribs and carrots to platter. Tent with foil to keep warm. If necessary, boil sauce to thicken slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over short ribs. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve with Crème Fraîche Mashed Potatoes
• A dried herb mixture available at specialty foods stores and in the spice section of some markets. A mix of dried thyme, basil, savory, and fennel seeds can be substituted.
• ** Small brine-cured black olives; available at Italian markets, specialty foods stores, and some supermarkets.

SHORT RIBS PROVENçAL

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine 4 tablespoons olive oil, the wine, onions, carrots, garlic and thyme. Use a vegetable peeler to cut 3 3-inch strips of orange peel and add them, along with juice of orange. Season with salt and pepper. Add short ribs, cover and refrigerate overnight.
• The next day, remove meat from marinade and pat dry on paper towels. Strain marinade into a large measuring cup. Reserve vegetables.
• Heat remaining oil in a 4-quart casserole. Add meat, a few pieces at a time, and lightly brown. Remove to a bowl.
• Add reserved onions and garlic to casserole, lower heat and cook until starting to brown. Add herbes de Provence. Return meat to casserole with reserved thyme, carrots and orange peel. Pour in 11/4 cups marinade. Bring to a simmer, season with salt and pepper, lower heat, cover and cook 3 hours. Moisten with more marinade if needed.
• Skim excess fat from surface, check seasoning, stir in tomato pesto or paste and serve from casserole.

GARLIC BRAISED SHORT RIBS WITH RED WINE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 275 degrees. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season short ribs on all sides with salt and pepper. Working in batches, sear short ribs on all sides until deeply and evenly browned, 6 to 8 minutes per batch. Transfer browned short ribs to a large plate and continue with remaining ribs.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of remaining fat, leaving the good browned bits behind. Reduce heat to medium, and add garlic, cut side down and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add onion, celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and continue to cook until vegetables are softened but not yet browned, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to coat. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until tomato paste has started to caramelize a bit on the bottom and up the edges of the pot, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add red wine and, using a wooden spoon, scrape up any browned or caramelized bits. Let this simmer 2 to 3 minutes, just to take the edge off and reduce a bit. Stir in beef stock along with thyme. Using tongs, return short ribs to the pot, along with any juices that have accumulated, nestling them in there so that they are submerged (if they are just barely covered, nestle them bone side up so that all the meat is submerged, adding more beef stock or water as necessary to cover). Bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer to oven.
• Cook, undisturbed, until short ribs are meltingly tender and falling off the bone (you should be able to shred the meat with a fork), 3½ to 4 hours.
• Using tongs, remove the ribs from the pot, taking care (for presentation purposes, really) not to let the bone slip out and transfer them to a large plate. (While you could serve the short ribs right out of this pot, the vegetables have all given up their flavor and texture and aren't worth much now, so feel free to strain the sauce for easier eating.) Scatter parsley, chives and lemon zest over the top of the short ribs. Separate the fat from the sauce, season with salt and pepper and serve alongside.