Hello braised short ribs! With cold weather, comes comfort food, and that is on my mind this week. So I’m giving you our delicious red wine braised short ribs. Slow-cooked all day with bacon, assorted mushrooms, carrots, and all the good stuff!

JUMP TO RECIPE

Okay, it’s spring in Lake Tahoe May 24th to be exact, and it’s been snowing all week. Seriously SNOW! The sun is just starting to pop out as I finish this post, but rain later today.

Just on Mother’s Day, I was running around the beach with my son in my bikini. Granted I didn’t go swimming in Lake Tahoe’s refreshing, yet cold waters but it was still warm enough to be in a swimsuit. Hooray springtime! I was looking forward to a sunny Memorial Day weekend filled with lake life fun, and I’m pretty sure that’s not happening.

So short ribs and comfort food have been on my mind and I needed to make this delicious dish. This short rib recipe is good, I mean good! I don’t think you will be disappointed in this one guys! A must try in my book of recipes.

What makes our braised short ribs the best? Well BACON + BOOZE!

I start by browning the short ribs in bacon fat, yep you heard that right, pork fat is a great high heat cooking oil and it builds flavor to your dish. Then I saute all the veggies, onions, garlic, mushrooms, carrots, anything else you have on hand and want to add. I open a bottle of wine, pour myself a glass and deglaze the pan. A little for me and a little for your short ribs.

You always want to cook with wine that you would actually drink.

I also sometimes add cognac to this dish as well, if I’m feeling boozy, again building layers of flavor! Watch out for your eyebrows through; cognac ignites the night! But lighting your pan on fire is always a great party trick. People go wild for balls of fire.

These braised short ribs accommodate gluten-free and dairy-free diets, yippy!

When people hear that they have guests that are coming over for dinner that are gluten-free or dairy-free, they freak out. “What to cook these strange people,” trust me my mother is one of them.

It doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. When you make slight adjustments to your recipes, you change a dish into accommodating special diets. Like using a great gluten-free flour option to coat the meat in, instead of regular all-purpose flour. Just a simple flour change. I talk all about this in my Fried Chicken post. You can go read that too! After this one 🙂

What should you braise your short ribs in?

I have been a big fan of dutch ovens since I was a teenager, yep I was one of those kids that asked their parent’s for a Le Creuset for her 17th birthday. I’ve been in love with cooking for quite some time now, you see.

Anywho, sometimes I don’t want to whip out the big, heavy, dutch oven that I have, I want to use something lighter. That is when the Le Creuset Everyday Pan comes in handy. Well, it’s as simple as that, you can use is every day, and you can fit about four to six short ribs inside to braise in the oven. Depending on how large those ribs are! I got some big ones!

What side dishes to serve with braised short ribs?

These braised short ribs are rich, they are luscious, and this boozy tomato sauce is velvety. You will want to be pouring that stuff on everything! Who knew this ultimate comfort food could be gluten-free and dairy-free.

My recommendations, keep it on the lighter side. I would have to say this dish would pair great with classic creamy mashed potatoes, an Italian mascarpone polenta, cauliflower puree or even simple spaghetti squash. All are great gluten-free side dish options that can easily be turned into dairy-free if needed. I hope you enjoy it!

LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENTS IF YOU ENJOYED THIS RECIPE!