This braised Short Rib Stew recipe is the most delicious, comforting and cozy meal for the winter months. Add the Gorgonzola Polenta and it's out of this world! Trust me!
You'll find comfort in every bite of this braised short rib stew.
It's in every shred of the tender beef that's falling off the bone.
It's in every slice of caramelized onion, and in the soft, sweet carrots.
There's comfort in the spices that will warm you to your core.
And it's most certainly in the creamy polenta that's oozing with melting gorgonzola.
Now imagine all of that delicious comfort in one bite -- a bit of all of it at once. The comfort level is over the top.
What are the ingredients in this recipe?
Please do not be daunted by the lengthy ingredient and instruction list. This is full meal with easy to find items and easy to follow steps.
- short ribs
- onion
- garlic
- thyme
- paprika, cinnamon
- mushrooms
- carrots
- tomato paste
- beef stock
- red wine
How to Braise Short Ribs
Braising is to first sear the food over high heat to brown it, and then finish the cooking in a liquid until tender.
This is the perfect one-pot meal for a casual, cozy gathering of friends for dinner.
You can make this way ahead of time, and whip up a salad and dessert the day you're serving it.
Recipe Tips
- I mentioned you can make the short rib stew ahead of time -- that can actually be up to a few days ahead of time, and it only gets better.
- You can use almost any root vegetables you like (i.e., turnips, parsnips, yams, kohlrabi).
- If you're not a fan of swiss chard, spinach is a great substitute.
Truthfully, I find the cooking process for stews of this sort, as comforting as eating them.
Even folks passing by on your sidewalk might catch some of this delicious aroma.
It's worth every second, and you'll be SO happy when you have the first bite!
Enjoy every last bite of this Braised Short Rib Stew!
Can't get enough cozy stews?
A few more of my favorite stews:
- Stove-Top Spiced Meatball Stew
- Quick and Easy Caramelized Mushroom and Pork Stew
- Provençal Seafood Stew from Cocoa and Lavender
What is exactly is a comfort food? Read this article to find out!
Braised Short Rib Stew with Creamy Gorgonzola Polenta and Swiss Chard
Ingredients
For the stew
- olive oil for the pan
- 2¼ pound beef short ribs, bone-in
- 1½ pounds yellow onion, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 8 ounces button mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2½ cups beef stock
- ½ cup dry red wine
- ¾ pound carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally, about ½-inch thick (about 2 ½ cups)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the polenta
- 5 cups beef stock
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1¾ cups polenta (coarse cornmeal)
- 1 cup half and half
- ⅔⅔ cup Gorgonzola, crumbled (about 4-ounces)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
For the Chard
- olive oil for the pan
- 6 cups packed Swiss chard, washed and dried, roughly chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
For the stew
- Sear the ribs. Place the ribs on a baking sheet and season all sides generously with salt and pepper. Coat the bottom of a very large oven-safe pot with olive oil. (The pot should be large enough to accommodate all the ribs, vegetables, and liquid -- a French Oven is perfect). Place the pot over high heat, and once it's very hot, add the ribs -- you should hear a sizzling sound, and if you don't, it's not hot enough. Wait until it's very hot and listen for the sizzle! Searing the meat this way caramelizes the surface which adds a ton of delicious flavor to the final dish -- it also helps to seal in the juices and reduces the overall cooking time. Brown the ribs very well, about three minutes per side. Remove them from pot, place them on a plate, and set aside.
- Set oven. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Cook onion and garlic, add herbs and spices, mushrooms. Add the onions and garlic to the pot where the ribs were seared, and cook over medium-high heat until they begin to brown and are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the fresh thyme, paprika and cinnamon and cook for another minute or so, until it's very aromatic.Add the mushrooms and a bit more olive oil to the pan. Cook until they become caramelized and brown, about 5 minutes.
- Brown the tomato paste. Add the tomato paste, and stir and cook for a couple of minutes. The bottom of your pot will become brown. This is great! It is flavor!
- Deglaze with stock and wine. Pour in the stock and wine and use a wooden spatula with a flat edge to scrape the bottom of the pan, working all the wonderful browned bits of flavor back into the sauce.
- Braise. Return the ribs to the pot and gently stir them into the sauce. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and place in the preheated 325°F oven and braise for 1 hour.
- Add carrots and continue to cook. Then remove the lid and carefully mix in the carrots. Cover again, and cook until the meat is very tender and easily comes off the bone, about 1 more hour.(If the sauce isn't quite as thick as you'd like, place the pot on the stove over medium-low heat and let it thicken to the desired consistency.)
- Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Here's How to Season to Taste)
For the polenta
- While the ribs are braising, in a medium-sized saucepan, add the salt to the stock and bring to a boil.
- Gradually whisk in the polenta. Reduce the heat to low and whisking often, cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, about 20 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and add the half and half, cheese, and butter. Stir to blend. Keep the pan covered until you're ready to serve.
For the chard
- Just a few minutes before the stew is removed from the oven, coat the bottom of a large sauté pan with olive oil, add the chard, and place it over medium-high heat. Stirring often, cook until it's wilted and tender, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Assembe
- Divide the polenta between 6 serving bowls. Add a bit of the chard on top of each one, followed by a portion of the short rib stew. Serve!
Notes
Deb|EastofEdenCooking
Oh wow! The Gorgonzola Polenta has captured my imagination! What a wonderful winter recipe, hearty and voluptuous with flavor.
valentina
I love how you describe this dish. Thank you, Deb! Happy New Year to you and yours! 🙂
David
Valentina - this does sound incredible. I just saw it on Facebook and flew right over to your site to drool. And it's only 7:00am! Definitely doable for the weekend! Happy New Year - wishing you great food, much joy, and tons of love!
valentina
Awww, thank you, David! I wish you and Mark all of that and then some! Thank you for all of your wonderful comments in 2015. So lovely to have connected with you over food. 🙂
sippitysup
Braises as gorgeous as this make me love these freezing nights we've been having. HNYXOGREG
valentina
I have been loving the cold nights! My favorite cooking season is a cold one. 😉 Happy New Year to you & Ken. XO
Marsha | Marsha's Baking Addiction
This meal looks so delicious and hearty! Perfect for these cold days!
valentina
Thanks so much, Marsha. Happy New Year! 🙂
Amanda {Striped Sptaula}
This looks like a perfect comfort food recipe for cold winter nights. Love the addition of Gorgonzola to the polenta, especially with the hint of cinnamon in the stew. Happy New Year!
valentina
Thanks Amanda! 🙂 Happy New Year to you!
Nellie
You had me at Gorgonzola!!! Yum! Yum! And more yum! This sounds amazing and is going on the top of my dinner list!!
valentina
Thanks so much, Nellie. Hope you love it as much as I do. 🙂
Tania @ COOKTORIA
Wow! This Short Rib Stew looks incredible!!! I cannot wait to give it a try! Thanks for sharing, Valentina!!!
valentina
And thank YOU for visiting! Hope you try it. 🙂
Kevin | Keviniscooking
This looks perfect for today. I really like the cinnamon addition and that polenta - wow!
valentina
Thanks, Kevin. I hope you try it. SO perfect for a cool night!
Isabelle @ Crumb
This sounds like all kinds of amazing. Braised short ribs are one of my favourite cold-weather comfort foods, and I'm loving what you've done to them here... especially that little dash of cinnamon, which sounds positively divine with all the other flavours you've got going on in there.
Pinning this to make the next time I have a lazy Sunday afternoon to spend in the kitchen.
valentina
Thanks so much, Isabelle. Here's to many lazy Sunday afternoons cooking! My favorite! 🙂
Mark, CompassandFork
That's a great looking stew all right. We really enjoy food cooked in a slow manner like this. All that goodness in the one pot!
valentina
Thanks so much, mark! Hope you try it. 🙂
Linger A Little, Kristy
I love that this dish is a one-pot meal and that it can be made ahead of time. I can only imagine that the flavors are intensified over time. We've had so much rain lately in the Midwest and I could really use a little bit of coziness with this unusual rainy season. Thanks so much for such a fantastic recipe.