Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Parsnip Celery Root Puree

Name: Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Parsnip Celery Root Puree
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 3 h 40 min
Total time: 4 h
Cuisine: comfort food
Ingredients: 4 big, meaty short ribs (about 3 lbs total), excess fat trimmed; kosher salt and pepper; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 medium carrot, scrubbed (no need to peel), diced; 1 stalk celery, diced; 1 very large onion, diced; 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 1 tablespoon tomato paste; 2 tablespoons flour (use a gluten free flour or omit for gf/Paleo); 1 1/2 cups dry red wine; 2 cups water; 2 bay leaves; 1 large sprig fresh thyme (sub 1/2 teaspoon dried); 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 lbs parsnips (3 medium), peeled and cubed; 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 lb celery root, peeled and cubed; 4 tablespoons butter (use grass fed for Paleo); 1/2 – 1 cup whole milk (substitute a non dairy milk for Paleo); kosher salt, to taste; white pepper, to taste

January 19, 2019 By Coley 26 Comments

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These Red Wine Braised Short Ribs with Parsnip Celery Root Puree are a delicious and comforting winter dinner that’s easy to make and perfect for a cozy night in.

Wintertime was made for meals like these red wine braised short ribs. Tender, fall-off-the-bone meat in a rich red wine sauce over top of a creamy puree made from parsnips and celery root. It only requires about 30 minutes of actual hands on work, the rest of the time is spent braising low and slow.

The key to making a good pot of short ribs is to start with good short ribs. I know I sound like the Barefoot Contessa when I say that, but hear me out. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve bought short ribs at the grocery store – for A LOT of money – then came home, cooked them, and wound up with a pot of greasy bones with just a tiny bit of meat floating around.

Once upon a time short ribs were a cheap cut of meat that butchers had a hard time selling, but these days they’ve become so trendy that the price has skyrocketed. They’re worth it, though, as long as you make the effort to find high quality ribs that have a high meat-to-fat-to-bone ratio. You can see how meaty mine were in the photos below. I happened to spot these at my local grocery store (Galloway ShopRite for anyone interested), but if you don’t see them the case, it never hurts to ask. Even if they’re not in stock, you can always place an order to pick up at a later date.

Of course, there should still be a reasonable amount of fat. They are ribs, after all. The fat should be well marbled throughout so that it melts into the meat like buttah. That marbling is key for making your short ribs exceptionally tender, succulent and fall-off-the-bone delicious.

You can add anything you want to a pot of braised short ribs, but I find that keeping it simple is best. A bit of red wine, some carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and a few herbs is all you need. Let the flavors speak for themselves, there’s no need to muddy them up with a bunch of spices and extra stuff. Maybe throw in some mushrooms if that’s your jam. Otherwise, resist the urge to doctor this up too much and you’ll be rewarded with a really tasty meal.

I serve these over a bed of creamy celery root and parsnip puree, but you can easily substitute with mashed potatoes, polenta, egg noodles or whatever other starch you prefer. I love the unique flavor of celery root and parsnips – they make a lovely combination when paired together (like in this Celery Root and Parsnip Gratin from my archives). I use an immersion blender (affiliate link) to get the puree silky smooth, which makes the most incredible base for the meaty, saucy short ribs.

I like to make this in a dutch oven so I can do it all in one pot, but there’s no reason why this couldn’t be cooked in a crock pot or slow cooker (or an instant pot, I just can’t tell you the directions for that because I don’t have one… yet). That said, it’s very important to brown the ribs first, rather than just throwing them into the pot in raw. This is what’s going to help develop a deep, meaty flavor and absolutely shouldn’t be skipped.

If you want to do this in a slow cooker you’ll need to brown the ribs and saute the vegetables on the stove first, then deglaze the pan with wine (because you don’t want to lose all that goodness!), and then transfer everything to the slow cooker. For my money, I’d rather just do it all in the same pot. But if you don’t have the luxury of being home all day to babysit the dutch oven, the slow cooker is absolutely a great way to go.

It’s supposed to drop to SEVEN degrees here on Sunday night, so you can bet I’ll be keeping my butt inside, cozied up with a bowl of these tender, fall-apart red wine braised short ribs.

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