For Passover, Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

Sunday, April 5, 2009

As Diane Keaton once said, "Soon the Passover holidays are coming and you'll be wanting to wear your matzos." (That's a little shout-out to the movie Sleeper, one of Woody Allen's best and well-worth watching, even if you're grossed out by what happened with him and Soon-Yi.)

But silly quotes aside, what will you be cooking for this year's Seder? There are a few good ideas on my
holiday foods page. But I figured that something new was in order this year.

I found myself thinking of a tasty-sounding recipe for short ribs that I'd clipped from a
Martha Stewart Living magazine a while back. The irony of this recipe's provenance is not lost on me but even though Martha Stewart may possibly be America's most famous WASP, I've found several excellent Jewish recipes from her magazine over the years.

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

And this yummy take on the traditional short ribs recipe is no exception. I love that it combines root vegetables (carrots, parsnips, and Yukon Gold potatoes) and fresh herbs (Italian parsley, rosemary and thyme), all of which are fresh, plentiful, delicious and affordable at this time of year, at least they are here in Northern California. I'm also a sucker for the combination of apple cider, garlic, onions and brown sugar that the ribs get stewed in. I hope you like it, too.

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

Happy Pesach to you and yours!

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs
Serves 4

Ingredients
* 3 pounds boneless beef short ribs, rimmed
* 1/8 cup of olive oil
* 2 medium-sized onions, halved then cut into 1/4-inch slices
* 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
* 1/6 cup packed dark-brown sugar
* 1 1/4 cups apple cider
* 3/4 cup chicken stock
* 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
* 1/2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
* 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped plus a little more for garnish
* 1/2 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices
* 3/4 pound carrots, peeled and cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces
* 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over high heat. Brown the beef in batches, flipping over once -- about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the ribs to a bowl and turn the heat down to medium.

2. Add the onions to the pot and cook stirring occasionally until they are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the brown sugar, cider, stock and 1/4 cup of water. Add the thyme, rosemary and parsley and return the beef ribs to the pot. Bring to a boil then remove from the heat.

3. Transfer the Dutch oven to the oven and cook until the ribs are almost fork tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Stir in the parsnips, carrots and potatoes and return to the oven. Cook for another hour. The ribs should now be extremely tender.

5. Transfer the beef and veggies to a serving platter. Simmer the cooking liquid over a medium flame (uncovered) until it reduces by half, about 7 minutes. Taste the liquid and add more salt and pepper if needed. Ladle some of the liquid over the ribs and veggies, top with the chopped parsley garnish and serve.

This would go well with:
*
Oven-roasted asparagus with garlic
*
Fresh horseradish (don't forget to wear eye and hand protection!)
*
Wilted Russian kale salad with balsamic vinegar and orange zest

1 comment:

Lynnn said...

Made the Short Ribs exactly as described, really delicious!

Sunday, April 5, 2009

For Passover, Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

As Diane Keaton once said, "Soon the Passover holidays are coming and you'll be wanting to wear your matzos." (That's a little shout-out to the movie Sleeper, one of Woody Allen's best and well-worth watching, even if you're grossed out by what happened with him and Soon-Yi.)

But silly quotes aside, what will you be cooking for this year's Seder? There are a few good ideas on my
holiday foods page. But I figured that something new was in order this year.

I found myself thinking of a tasty-sounding recipe for short ribs that I'd clipped from a
Martha Stewart Living magazine a while back. The irony of this recipe's provenance is not lost on me but even though Martha Stewart may possibly be America's most famous WASP, I've found several excellent Jewish recipes from her magazine over the years.

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

And this yummy take on the traditional short ribs recipe is no exception. I love that it combines root vegetables (carrots, parsnips, and Yukon Gold potatoes) and fresh herbs (Italian parsley, rosemary and thyme), all of which are fresh, plentiful, delicious and affordable at this time of year, at least they are here in Northern California. I'm also a sucker for the combination of apple cider, garlic, onions and brown sugar that the ribs get stewed in. I hope you like it, too.

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs

Happy Pesach to you and yours!

Beef Short Ribs With Root Vegetables & Spring Herbs
Serves 4

Ingredients
* 3 pounds boneless beef short ribs, rimmed
* 1/8 cup of olive oil
* 2 medium-sized onions, halved then cut into 1/4-inch slices
* 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
* 1/6 cup packed dark-brown sugar
* 1 1/4 cups apple cider
* 3/4 cup chicken stock
* 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
* 1/2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
* 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped plus a little more for garnish
* 1/2 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices
* 3/4 pound carrots, peeled and cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces
* 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over high heat. Brown the beef in batches, flipping over once -- about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the ribs to a bowl and turn the heat down to medium.

2. Add the onions to the pot and cook stirring occasionally until they are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the brown sugar, cider, stock and 1/4 cup of water. Add the thyme, rosemary and parsley and return the beef ribs to the pot. Bring to a boil then remove from the heat.

3. Transfer the Dutch oven to the oven and cook until the ribs are almost fork tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Stir in the parsnips, carrots and potatoes and return to the oven. Cook for another hour. The ribs should now be extremely tender.

5. Transfer the beef and veggies to a serving platter. Simmer the cooking liquid over a medium flame (uncovered) until it reduces by half, about 7 minutes. Taste the liquid and add more salt and pepper if needed. Ladle some of the liquid over the ribs and veggies, top with the chopped parsley garnish and serve.

This would go well with:
*
Oven-roasted asparagus with garlic
*
Fresh horseradish (don't forget to wear eye and hand protection!)
*
Wilted Russian kale salad with balsamic vinegar and orange zest

1 comment:

Lynnn said...

Made the Short Ribs exactly as described, really delicious!