Beef Short Ribs and Mashed Potatoes

I really wanted to braise some meat today because I know I'll be home for a while. I tried to find some brisket because it's cheap but when I got to the meat counter there wasn't any. So I picked the next cheapest thing I could braise- short ribs. I really like these anyways so I was actually pretty excited to make them. Since I had to buy a few extra short ribs due to how they were packaged I decided to invite some friends to help me eat it all. I don't think they minded the free and good food haha.

Short ribs tend to shrink during cooking so make sure you have about 2 ribs per person and 3 if people are really hungry. You can also do a whole lot of side dishes to stretch the meat. You could make this dish in a slow cooker by doing steps 1-3 in a pan and then transferring everything to the slow cooker. I suggest this way you can have a delicious meal right when you come home for work.

Ingredients:
6 Short Ribs (trimmed)
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 onion, large chop
3 carrots, peeled and largely chopped
3 stalks of celery, large chop
1 28 oz can of san marzano tomatoes (diced if you can find them)
1 cup red wine
1 1/2 cup beef stock

Mashed Potatoes:
4 Yukon Gold potatoes
1/3 cup shredded mozzarella (or any cheese or your choice)
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
milk and butter

Directions:

1. Preheat Oven to 300 degrees. Drizzle 1 tbs olive oil in the bottom of a large, oven proof pot and heat over medium high. Season short ribs with the spices of your choice and salt and pepper. Place short ribs in to brown and cook for 3-4 minutes per side. Leave the short ribs alone while cooking on one side so it forms a nice crust. Turn meat and continue to cook until all sides are browned up. Remove ribs and set aside

2. While meat is browning, roughly chop all the vegetables. Once meat is finished add veggies to the hot pan and season with a large pinch of salt and pepper. Cook over medium high heat until veggies start to soften, about 7 minutes.

3. Add the canned tomatoes and cook another minute. Then add the wine and beef stock. Allow everything to come to a simmer then add the short ribs back to the pan. Make sure they are completely covered with liquid. Place in preheated oven for about 2 hours or short ribs are tender.

4. When ribs get close to being finished go ahead and make any side dishes. I decided to make some decked out mashed potatoes. Peel the yukon potatoes, cut into small chunks, and place into cold water. Allow the water to come to a boil and cook potatoes until fork tender.

5. Drain the potatoes and mash with the cheese, a little butter and a splash of milk. Add more milk for consistency if needed. Once everything is mashed up together add salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with the fresh basil.

6. Once ribs are tender, remove them from pan and set aside. Pour the rest of the veggies and liquid into a blender and mix. If you want a thinner sauce add water, if you want a thicker sauce add more veggies. Place ribs on a platter and spoon some of the sauce on top. Place on a table with all the other side dishes and enjoy!!!