This dish sings of the Lake District of Northern Italy. The sauce is flavored with mushrooms, red wine and fresh French tarragon that pairs wonderfully with tender short ribs. Remember, ingredient amounts are starting points. Use Italian eyes. I rely on adding seasonings until my ancestors speak to me and say, “enough my child,” but you may not have that method available to you.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pound boneless beef short ribs, seasoned with kosher salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 8 oz whole crimini mushrooms, quartered
- 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup crushed tomatoes
- 4 sprigs fresh parsley (see note)
- 10 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 tbsp roughly chopped French tarragon
- 2 cups red wine (like pinot noir or cabernet sauvignon)
- 8 oz Pappardelle pasta (see note below)
Instructions in 8 steps
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Brown the short ribs in the pot for about five minutes on each side. Remove them from the pan.
- Add the butter to the pot, and once it’s melted add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic. Cook the vegetables for about ten minutes, stirring frequently. Add the salt, pepper, and sprinkle the flour over the top of the veggies. Stir to coat them in the flour and add the tomatoes, parsley, thyme, and tarragon. Add the wine and stir to combine.
- Place the short ribs back in the pot and add enough water to the pot so that they’re covered (I use 2 cups of water, but depending on your pot, you may need a little more or less).
- Bring the pot to a boil. Turn the heat off and cover the pot with a lid slightly askew to allow steam to escape.
- Transfer the pot to the oven for two and a half to three hours, or until the short ribs shred easily with a fork.
- Remove the short ribs from the pot. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the sauce into a large bowl removing all the vegetables from the pot. Press on the vegetables to extract as much liquid as possible before discarding. Pour the strained liquid back into the pot and bring it to a boil over high heat. Adjust the heat to medium to maintain a strong simmer for thirty minutes or until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. While the sauce reduces, cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Shred the short ribs and place them back in the sauce. At this point, taste the sauce and add more salt if you think it needs it. Simmer for a few minutes to warm the beef through. If desired, add a generous handful of fresh grape tomatoes at the end. Serve with the pasta.
Notes
Because you will strain the sauce there’s no need to chop the parsley or thyme. You can toss them in the sauce, stems and all.
Pappardelle is a thick, ribbon-like egg pasta that has a great texture. It’s available at most mainstream grocery stores, but if you can’t find it, substitute linguine or fettuccine, instead.