The beef
It’s rainy and cold around here right now. T.S. Eliot said that April is the cruelest month and he certainly hit the nail on the head. Funny how weather like this in Paris didn’t even phase me but here it sure does get me down. That and the fact that my fearless minivan, hauler of trees, compost, groceries, and kids, has broken down and been at the shop since last Thursday. I’m torn between wanting to stop sinking money into repairs and get something new, fuel efficient, and small and wanting it to pull through so I can do some bondo work on its rust spots this summer…perhaps even give it a snazzy, arty, creative paint job. We’ll see how this saga ends up soon enough. Until then I’ve been driving Dave’s car and logging a lot of drive time as I drop Dave and the boys off and then pick them up again later in the day.
Braised short ribs are perfect for when your life becomes unreasonably hectic and stressful. Begin the day before you want to eat them. In a deep, large dutch oven brown each piece. Add 1/2 bottle of red wine, 1 onion peeled and quartered, 5 garlic cloves, bashed but not peeled, and a can of whole roma tomatoes. If the liquid amount is low feel free to add water. Also add salt and pepper and a bay leaf or two. Cover the pot and stick it in the refrigerator. On the day you want to eat them you should preheat the oven to 325F about 3 hours before you want to serve them. While the oven is preheating put the pot on a burner and heat up the contents then pop the ribs into the oven. 3 hours later they’ll come out of the oven looking like little succulent pot roast. There is nothing that well-marbled, braised, grass-fed, locally-raised beef won’t cure…well maybe there is… but it sure does fix me up after a bad day.
Enjoy those ribs with some nice smashed potatoes, a nice pool of reduced braising juices lapping at their base, and a delicious pile of haricot verte to contrast. Don’t forget the wine.
Beef was raised by and purchased from Eric and Carrie Johnson at Jordandal Farm.
6 Responses to “The beef”
1 Leisureguy 8 April 2008 @ 4:06 pm
That’s an interesting idea, to brown the ribs and then let them marinate in the cooking liquid. Here’s another approach that might be of interest.
2 Vicki 8 April 2008 @ 7:28 pm
Must be something in the air, I made short ribs last week, and I’ve seen at least 3 other blogposts about them since!
3 Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) 9 April 2008 @ 5:15 am
These are the last gasp of winter for me — the ultimate cold-weather comfort food, but when the warmer weather hits, they get pushed aside by salads and local asparagus! I like the idea of browning and then marinating — I’ve never used that technique.
4 Barb O. 10 April 2008 @ 6:35 pm
These look delicious; I’ll be sure to try them soon.
Thanks for the plug for the Johnsons–they’re the best kind of folks! Almost all of the meat we eat in this house comes from Jordandal.
5 vanessa 11 April 2008 @ 1:29 pm
Leaisureguy and Lydia, I must confess that my motivation for browning them and then letting them soak in the wine was pure convenience…I knew I’d only have time to get them in the oven the next day…but I think it did probably add some flavor.
Vicki, I always end up making short ribs right before spring…I get to the bottom of the freezer and there they are.
Barb, I agree. We are so lucky to have so many good providers of meat and produce.
6 Lizzie 16 April 2008 @ 10:52 am
Mmm - that looks so delicious. I don’t think I’ve ever had beef short ribs.
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