With the crisp, fall air making its appearance at the very start of October, it's only fitting to break out the slow cookers and dutch ovens to make cozy, comforting dinners for everyone to enjoy. One of the best, and easiest, meals I make in my house is my red wine braised short ribs recipe. If you're looking for a tender, flavorful, and stick-to-your-bones comforting short rib recipe, this one is for you. Plus, we cook with wine, doesn't get any more exciting than this!

Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

Short Ribs are a cut from the lower portion of the rib cage, and carry a great deal of flavor from the surrounding fat on each individual cut. When short ribs are braised well, short ribs yield tender, delicate, flavorful, and super delicious meat that can be paired with just about anything you can think of.

What's so great about short ribs?

Other than the delicious flavor they provide, they actually pack a great deal of nutrients, and are versatile for many recipes.

• Short Rib bolognese
• Short rib quesadillas
• Short rib tacos
• Short ribs over polenta
• Short rib ragu
• Short rib ravioli

The list literally goes on and on, but if you really want to get good at making short ribs, making this red wine braised short rib recipe is the perfect one to get you hooked on short ribs.

How do I braise short ribs?

The act of "Braising" means to take a tougher piece of meat, such as short ribs, and cooking the meat in liquid until it is fall-off-the-bone tender. This is done typically in a slow cooker, pressure cooker or a dutch oven. I tend to use my dutch oven when braising because it traps all of the delicious flavors inside, and I can control the temperature. With this particular recipe, we use vegetable stock, coconut aminos, and deliciously dry red wine, like a Cabernet.

Why "red wine" braised?

Red wine adds acidity, and it also gives a lot of deep, bold flavor to the meat. We don't use an entire bottle, but simply one half a cup of dry red wine. I don't prefer to use a sweet red as it can compromise the flavor. We want bold, savory notes, and a dry red does the job beautifully.

Ingredients

You'll be delighted that this recipe does not call for any crazy ingredients, although you might need to get coconut aminos to add a little sweet and savory to the dish. You can find all of these ingredients fairly easily at your local supermarket.

• Short Ribs: The star of the show! You can go to a butcher for this, or your grocery store.
• Carrots and Zucchini: When these absorb the liquid, they cook until fork tender and pair well with the meat.
• Broth/Stock: I like to use vegetable stock to get more vegetable nutrients, but beef stock works well too. As long as you use enough braising liquid (3-4 cups) you can use whichever you prefer.
• Coconut aminos: Adds an additional flavor profile for the meat. It creates a sweet but savory flavor, and goes really well with the red wine and the short ribs.
• Dry red wine: This is going to help braise the short ribs, and add a whole lot of flavor!
• Salt
• Pepper
• Rosemary
• 2 bay leaves

Directions

Making this recipe is easier than you think. If you have a weekend where you're home for the evening, or if you're looking for a recipe to wow a crowd, this is excellent for those occasions!

1. Heat a large dutch oven on a medium-high heat and coat with olive oil
2. Pat dry the short ribs and place into the dutch oven, sprinkling with salt and pepper.
3. Let cook on all sides until browned. Pour in the coconut aminos and red wine to deglaze the bottom of the pan.
4. Add in the vegetable or beef stock, carrots, bay leaves, and rosemary. Cover and bring the flame to low.
5. Let cook for 2 hours, then add in the zucchini. Cover again and let cook for an additional 30 minutes.
6. Serve over rice, potatoes, or risotto.

Tips and Tricks:

To make the best version of this recipe, remember the few tips and tricks below:

• DO keep the flame low, but teeter on a medium low flame so that they meat cooks but doesn't over cook. Go back and forth between listening for boil, and keeping the dutch oven on a simmer.
• Add in the zucchini towards the end. When testing I added the zucchini early on and it fell apart.
• Brown the short ribs before braising. Browning adds a whole extra layer of delicious flavor.

Hungry for more?

Looking to pair this recipe with a cocktail? Look no further! Try out these yummy, refreshing cocktails:

• Grapefruit Gin Fizz
• Tropical Mezcal Margarita
• Blood Orange Margarita