At Home: Crock-Pot Short Ribs

Keith was in the mood for a hearty dish to warm him up one night and decided to make Crock-Pot Short Ribs in another installment for What Micky Eats...At Home.  These ribs are an easy alternative to traditionally braised short ribs—after a quick saute in a pan, you don't need to pay any attention to them once you get them in the slow cooker.  Check out his recipe below.

Crock-Pot Short Ribs

• 4 short ribs bone-in
• 5 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
• ½ onion, sliced
• 3 celery sticks, thickly sliced
• 1 Tbsp of fig jam
• ¼ cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup red wine
• ½ teasp salt
• ½ teasp pepper
• ½ teasp garlic powder
• 4 teasp cornstarch
• 3 Tbsp cold water

- Season meat with salt, pepper, garlic powder.  Brown all sides of short ribs in a pan with vegetable oil on high heat.
- Remove meat from pan and add to slow cooker.

- Add carrots, onions and celery to pan.  Lower heat and saute until onions are soft.
- Add red wine, fig jam and cranberries.  Reduce wine for about 5 minutes, then pour vegetable mixture over meat in slow cooker.

- Cook on high in slow cooker for 5-6 hours.
- Remove meat. Strain liquid into a bowl. Save carrots for a side to serve with meat.
- Add strained liquid to a saucepan. Bring to a boil. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into cooking juices.
- Return to a boil; cook and stir 1-2 minutes or until thickened.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour thickened liquid over short ribs.
- Serve on mashed potatoes with the carrots.

Keith did all the browning and sauteing outside on the grill to keep the kitchen mess to a minimum.  Plus, by using the Crock-Pot, clean up was a breeze.  The meat was very tender and the whole dish was rustic and satisfying for these chilly winter nights.  Don't have red wine handy?  Try this other version of short ribs made with beer.