This is my first braising and I’m very glad I did it.  It’s Le Creuset’s braised short ribs.  It came out SUPER fork tender and falling apart.  As you can see it made an awesome and plentiful sauce.  The smell of the red wine mixing with the blended tomatoes is wonderful.  Changes: we used onion powder versus raw, omitted the noodle side dish, and omitted the gremolata.  **We don’t have a braiser so we used a 12″ steel pan for the stovetop cooking and a Le Creuset rectangular baker for the oven part.  It turned out fine.  I’d say it serves more like four people.  Highly recommended!

Braised Short Ribs with Buttered Egg Noodles

Created for the 3 1/2 qt. braiser
Serves 8

Ingredients:

• • 8 beef short ribs
  • Salt and pepper to taste**
  • All-purpose flour for dredging
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 onion, diced**
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1 1/2 cups red wine**
  • 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled Roma tomatoes**
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 pound egg noodles
  • 2 ounces butter
  • Gremolata: Combine 2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley, 1 tablespoon lemon zest and 1 tablespoon minced garlic.**

**Known IC irritants, tread carefully!

Directions:

Liberally coat the short ribs with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off any excess.

Place the braiser over high heat. When it’s very hot, add 1/4 cup oil and reduce the temperature to medium-high. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the short ribs and cook on all sides until browned.

Remove the short ribs from the pan and rinse the oil and flour from the braiser. Return the pan to the burner, reduce the heat to medium-low, and add the remaining oil. Add the onion and carrot to the pan and cook until they are nicely browned, about 15 to 20 minutes. The browner the vegetables, the more flavorful the sauce.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Return the short ribs to the pan and add the wine. Raise the heat to medium-high. Blend the tomatoes (either in the can with an immersion blender, or in a standing blender) and add the puree to the braiser. Add a teaspoon of salt. Add the bay leaf and bring to a simmer.

Cover the braiser with the lid slightly ajar and place it in the oven. Cook 3 to 4 hours or until the ribs are very tender.

When ready to serve, cook the noodles as recommended on the package, return them to the pot and toss with the butter.

Divide the noodles among 8 plates. Set a short rib beside or on the noodles. Skim any clear fat that has risen to the top of the sauce and discard. Spoon the sauce over each rib. Garnish the ribs and sauce with gremolata.