Ingredients (~8 servings)
- 1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes with juices
- ~5 lbs beef short ribs, bone-in
- 1 1/2 tsp salt, divided
- Black pepper to taste
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 1/3 cups dry red wine
- 1 1/3 cups beef broth
- 1 1/2 Tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
- 3/4 tsp dried oregano
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2/3 cup heavy cream, optional
- For serving: cooked pasta (pappardelle works great), freshly grated parmesan, chopped parsley
Prep the Tomatoes and Season the Short Ribs
Preheat your oven to 300F.
Add the canned tomatoes with their juices to a large bowl and crush them by hand into bite-sized pieces.
Season the short ribs on all sides with half the salt (~3/4 tsp) and black pepper.
Sear the Short Ribs in Batches
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat.
Once hot, sear half the short ribs for ~3-4 minutes per side until well browned on all sides. Transfer to a plate.
Repeat with the remaining ribs.
The ribs will release quite a bit of fat; spoon out the excess, leaving about 1-2 Tbsp in the pot.
Sauté the Aromatics
Add the chopped carrot and onion to the same pot with the remaining fat.
Sauté for ~6-8 minutes until they start to lightly brown and soften.
Stir in the minced garlic and tomato paste; cook for ~1-2 minutes, stirring constantly so the tomato paste doesn’t burn.
Deglaze with Wine and Add Remaining Ingredients
Pour in the red wine and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
Let it come to a simmer and cook for ~2 minutes.
Add the beef broth, crushed tomatoes, rosemary, remaining salt (~3/4 tsp), and oregano. Stir to combine.
Nestle the short ribs back into the pot in as even a layer as possible – some will stick out above the liquid and that’s fine.
Top with the thyme sprigs, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and transfer to the oven.
Braise in the Oven Until Fork Tender
Cook for ~3 to 3.5 hours until the meat easily falls off the bone when prodded with a fork.
The sauce should be thick and the ribs should shred easily.
Shred the Meat and Finish the Sauce
Remove the pot from the oven and skim the fat from the surface with a spoon – don’t worry about getting every bit.
Remove and discard the thyme sprigs.
Transfer the short ribs to a large bowl and let cool slightly. Remove any bones and large pieces of fat or gristle, then shred the meat with two forks.
Return the shredded meat to the pot and stir it into the sauce.
If using cream, stir it in now and let it warm through for ~2 minutes.
Taste and adjust with more salt and pepper as needed.
Serve with Pasta
For the full batch, cook ~1 1/3 lbs of pasta according to package directions, but stop 1-2 minutes before it’s fully cooked.
Add the slightly undercooked pasta directly to the ragu and let it finish cooking in the sauce for ~2-3 minutes – this helps the pasta absorb more flavor.
Serve topped with freshly grated parmesan and chopped parsley.
The ragu keeps well in the fridge for up to 4 days and freezes for up to 3 months.
Beef Short Rib Ragu
Ingredients
Ingredients (~8 servings)
- 1 can whole tomatoes with juices 28 oz
- ~5 lbs beef short ribs bone-in
- 1 1/2 tsp salt divided
- Black pepper to taste
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large carrot peeled and finely chopped
- 1 large onion chopped
- 8 cloves garlic minced
- 3 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 1/3 cups dry red wine
- 1 1/3 cups beef broth
- 1 1/2 Tbsp fresh rosemary finely chopped
- 3/4 tsp dried oregano
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2/3 cup heavy cream optional
- For serving: cooked pasta pappardelle works great, freshly grated parmesan, chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F.
- Crush canned tomatoes by hand in a bowl.
- Season short ribs with half the salt and black pepper.
- Heat olive oil in Dutch oven over medium heat and sear ribs in batches, 3-4 minutes per side until browned. Transfer to plate.
- Spoon out excess fat, leaving 1-2 Tbsp in pot.
- Add carrot and onion, sauté 6-8 minutes until lightly browned.
- Stir in garlic and tomato paste, cook 1-2 minutes stirring constantly.
- Pour in wine, scrape up browned bits, simmer 2 minutes.
- Add broth, crushed tomatoes, rosemary, remaining salt, and oregano. Stir to combine.
- Nestle ribs back into pot, top with thyme sprigs, cover with lid, and transfer to oven.
- Braise 3 to 3.5 hours until meat falls off bone.
- Remove pot from oven and skim fat from surface.
- Remove and discard thyme sprigs.
- Transfer ribs to bowl, let cool slightly, remove bones and fat, then shred meat with forks.
- Return shredded meat to pot and stir into sauce.
- Stir in cream if using and warm through 2 minutes.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Cook pasta until 1-2 minutes underdone, add to ragu, and finish cooking in sauce 2-3 minutes.
- Serve topped with parmesan and parsley.
