Braised Short Ribs on Cauliflower Puree

You know it's winter when you start seeing short ribs on every menu.

This recipe is reserved for winter weekends, when you have lots of time.

They take a long time in the oven, about 3 hours, but that gives you plenty of time to sip some nice red wine, while making the sides.

This recipe is from 2 Dudes One Pan cookbook, which you know I love.

The only thing I changed in the recipe was that I omitted the mushrooms.
It called for 3 cups of shitakes, and since we have a mushroom hater in the house, I didn't dare try to sneak in that quantity.

They were not missed in this dish.

Instead of serving the short ribs on mashed potatoes or polenta, I decided to serve them on a cauliflower puree.
This was delicious, and not as heavy as the starchy potatoes.



My Roasted Cauliflower Puree:

Cut a head of cauliflower cut into florets and toss w/ kosher salt and olive oil.
Roast at 400F for about 25 minutes, till cauliflower florets are turning caramel color.

Put roasted cauliflower in a bowl and mash with 1 tablespoon of butter, a handful of grated parmesan, and about 1/8-1/4 cup of half & half.
(I mash the cauliflower by hand with a potato masher, but you can make it more of a puree by using a hand mixer and adding more cream, I like a rougher texture). Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Fry up some sliced shallots in olive oil, and sprinkle with some flour. When crispy, throw them in with the cauliflower.
Garnish with fresh parsley.



Beer Braised Short Ribs: (adapted from 2 Dudes One Pan)

2 tbsp canola or grapeseed oil
4 lbs. bone in beef short ribs
1.5 tbsp kosher salt
1 large carrot
20 shitake mushroom caps (I omitted)
1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 med. turnip, peeled and finely chopped
1 12oz. can or bottle of beer
2 cups of water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
5 whole garlic cloves
5 whole star anise
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes



Preheat oven to 300F.

Sprinkle short ribs with kosher salt all over.

In a large Dutch oven brown your short ribs in the canola oil for about 12 minutes, until all sides are nice and brown.

The short ribs will make a lot of fat. Remove the ribs to a plate, and drain off all the fat, except for 1 tbsp of the oil.

Add the mushrooms (if using), carrots, onions and turnips and cook, scraping up the brown bits until the onions start to soften, about 4 minutes.



Add 2 cups of water, beer, soy sauce, brown sugar, ketchup, garlic cloves, star anise and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer.

Return the short ribs to the pot with any accumulated juices.



Cover and place in the oven. Bake until the short ribs fall off the bone in tender chunks, about 3 hours.



With a slotted spoon, transfer the meat and vegetables to a platter and serve on mashed cauliflower.

Delicious!