Red Wine Braised Short Ribs is the best recipe for tender fall apart bone-in beef short ribs slow cooked with gravy in a Dutch Oven. This is a perfect comfort meal you can make at home for your friends and family!
This is one of my most favorite recipes for bone-in beef short ribs, slowly braised in red wine sauce in a Dutch oven! While it takes some time to cook in the oven, the meat comes out perfectly tender and falls apart.
Similar to my Instant Pot Boneless Short Ribs and Instant Pot Lamb Shanks the meat is cooked in red wine sauce that brings the most aroma to the whole dish. The trick is to reduce the wine first, so it becomes more concentrated and brings a rich and deep flavor.
Table of contents
How to make this recipe
To start, let’s preheat the oven to 350°F.
Rinse and pat dry the meat and generously season with salt and pepper.
Heat olive oil in 6 Qt Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in two batches for 5-6 minutes on each side, then transfer to a plate and set aside.
Add diced onions and cook for 8-10 minutes or until they are translucent and softened. Then add celery and carrots, and cook for 3-5 minutes more.
Add garlic and tomato paste and cook for a few more minutes.
Stir in the wine, bring to boil, lower the heat to medium and simmer until it reduces in half, about 15-20 minutes. (Photo 9-10).
NOTE: I like to use Cabernet Sauvignon to braise the meat, as it provides the best flavor. My favorite one is Decoy (NOT sponsored)
Add beef broth and stir.
Transfer the meat back to the pot, add bay leaves, thyme and oregano.
Cover with the lid and transfer to the oven.
Cook at 350°F for 2 ½-3 hours or until the meat is tender.
NOTE: You can start testing the meat after 2 hours of cooking. Simply pierce the meat with the fork to see if the meat is tender and fall of the bones.
How to make Red Wine Sauce
Transfer the meat to the plate and cover with foil.
Strain the sauce and discard the vegetables.
Pour the liquid back to the pot and simmer until it thickens.
NOTE: I usually just strain the sauce and discard the vegetables. If you want to keep the veggies, there is no need to strain the sauce. Just bring it to boil on the stove and reduce the liquid.
NOTE: If the sauce it too liquid, add 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water, and stir. Cook for a couple of more minutes.
Serve the meat with red wine sauce on top of homemade mashed potatoes and some vegetables on the side.
Tips for Best Results
Red Wine. 99% of the alcohol will evaporate while you reduce and slow cook the wine, so you don’t taste it in the final dish. It just provides a richer deeper flavor.
Short Ribs. For this recipe, I prefer to use bone-in short ribs. However, you can easily use boneless short ribs or even beef tips.
How to store and reheat
Storage. When it’s cooled off, transfer to an air-tight container and refrigerate for 4-5 days.
Reheat. I prefer to reheat it in the oven because of the even heat distribution. You can also do it on a stove top over medium heat.
Freezing. You can freeze it in a freezer friendly bag or an air-tight container for up to 3 months. To defrost, just leave it in the fridge overnight and reheat as mentioned above.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This recipe is based on my popular Instant Pot Boneless Short Ribs. You can just follow that recipe and cook bone-in short ribs on manual high pressure for 45 minutes with 15 minutes natural pressure release.
Yes! You can cook it a day before and just reheat it in the oven before ready to serve. They actually taste even better on the second day as all the flavors melt together.
If you don’t want to use alcohol in your meal, you can substitute it with beef broth. Just skip the step with adding and reducing the wine and add 5 cups of broth instead of 3 cups.
How to serve
Potatoes. The best way to serve braised beef is with some good homemade potatoes. These are my favorite recipes:
Vegetables. Vegetables and greens are always a good addition! Because the braised meat is very rich and quite heavy, it’s good to have some veggies on the side to lighten up the meal.
- Honey Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
- Oven Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
- Green Beans Amandine
- Roasted Broccoli with Parmesan
Bread. There is nothing better than freshly baked homemade bread!
MORE COMFORT MEALS YOU MIGHT LIKE:
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Boneless Short Ribs
- Oven Baked Buffalo Wings
- Instant Pot Pot Roast
- Borscht Soup with Beef
- Instant Pot BBQ Pulled Pork
- Pasta with Meat Sauce
- Dutch Oven Beef Stew
- Kotleti
- Instant Pot BBQ Ribs
Did you make this recipe?!? I’d love to know how it turned out! leave a comment and a rating below👇 thank you!
Red Wine Braised Short Ribs in Dutch Oven
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3-4 pounds bone-in short ribs 8-10 pieces
- Salt pepper to taste
- 1 large onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 3 cloves garlic crashed
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups wine Cabernet Sauvignon
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 spring thyme
- 1 spring oregano
Instructions
- To start, let’s preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Rinse and pat dry the meat and generously season with salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in 6 Qt Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in two batches for 5-6 minutes on each side, then transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Add 1 diced onion and cook for 8-10 minutes or until translucent and softened. Then add 2 stalks diced celery and 2 diced carrots, and cook for 3-5 minutes more.
- Add 3 cloves smashed garlic and 2 tbsp tomato paste and cook for a few more minutes.
- Stir in 2 cups wine, bring to boil, lower the heat to medium and simmer until it reduces in half, about 15-20 minutes.
- Add 3 cups beef broth and stir.
- Transfer the meat back to the pot, add bay leaves, thyme and oregano.
- Cover with the lid and transfer to the oven.
- Cook for 2 ½-3 hours or until the ribs are tender.
- Transfer the meat to the plate and cover with foil.
- Strain the sauce and set discard the vegetables.
- Pour the liquid back to the pot and simmer until it thickens.
Notes
- I usually just strain the sauce and discard the vegetables. If you want to keep the veggies, there is no need to strain the sauce. Just bring it to boil on the stove and reduce the liquid.
- I like to use Cabernet Sauvignon to braise the meat, as it provides the best flavor. My favorite one is Decoy.
- You can start testing the meat after 2 hours of cooking. Simply pierce the meat with the fork to see if the meat is tender and fall of the bones.
- If the sauce it too liquid, add 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water, and stir. Cook for a couple of more minutes.
- Red Wine. If you don’t want to use alcohol in your meal, you can substitute it with beef broth. Just skip the step with adding and reducing the wine and add 5 cups of broth instead of 3 cups.
- And just for insight, if you decide to cook with wine, 99% of the alcohol will evaporate while you reduce and slow cook the wine. Also, you don’t taste the wine in the final dish. It just provides a richer flavor.
- Short Ribs. For this recipe, I prefer to use bone-in short ribs. However, you can easily use boneless short ribs or even beef tips.
Can I make half the recipe at a time if I am cooking for two? Should I reduce the liquid or keep it at the 6 serving amount?
Hi Marisa! I would keep the full amount of liquid, just because you want the meat to be submerged into the liquid, so it won’t be dry.
Help! I just opened my package and my ribs are thin sliced. Would this still work if I cut the oven time to an hour?
Hello! I followed this recipe exactly and when I pulled it out of the oven, there was barely any liquid left. Did I do something wrong or is that how it’s supposed to be? It went in the oven with lots of liquid and I cooked for 2 1/2 hours.
Hi Crystal, did you cook with the lid ON or OFF?
I cooked with it on.
This was wonderful, only problem was there was nothing left over…. definite keeper.
Ha-ha! Thank you, Andrea! Do happy you liked it!
I have made this recipe 5 or 6 times for dinner parties and I’m making it tonight for just the two us. We love it and it is not complicated at all to make. The flavors are deep and rich and so delicious. Thank you for sharing this. You have made us so very happy!!!
Thank you so much, Judy! It makes me happy to know that you are making my recipes!
Hello! I’m hoping to make this recipe for dinner could I use a crock pot instead of a dutch oven?
Thanks!
Hi Carolyn! Unfortunately, I never used a crock pot, so I cannot answer this question.
Your prep time of 20 minutes is misleading. Searing the meat and reducing the wine alone took around 35-40 minutes. But the dish was flavorful and my family loved it.
I just made these tonight and they are delicious! I might have done something wrong though. I took them out of the oven after 2 hours and they were so tender, but the sauce had thickened so much it was separated from all the fat. I had to separate the yummy part from the fat and remake the sauce. Can you tell me what I might have done?
Hi Mackenzie! I’m glad you liked the recipe! It’s really hard to say what happened without seeing the sauce. Was the meat too fatty?
I didn’t think it was. I will definitely check on that the next time we make it though!
Can I use a 3 1/2 Dutch oven instead for this recipe?
You can try, but I think it will be a bit too small and might spill some sauce. If you do that, just make sure you also put a baking pan on a lower lack to catch any spills.
Great, thank you for your reply. I only have a pound and a half of meat for just my partner and I, so figured there would be a little bit more room but wanted to ask first. Excited to try making this tonight!
Made this for Christmas dinner last night and it was incredible! Thank you so much for this recipe! It will forever be a holiday favorite for my boyfriend and I!
Yaay! So happy to hear that!
This was a big hit at my house! The meat was very tender and savory and the gravy was delicious. I used a heavy duty roasting pan and covered it with foil to bake.as my Dutch oven wasn’t quite big enough. The only additional ingredient I used was Better Than Bullion ( about a tablespoon ) to the bullion mixture. It makes it very rich and the gravy. Thank you for suggesting the type of red wine to use also. My family says to add this to my “Make Again” file.
Thank you, Amy! I’m so happy you liked the recipe!
These are outstanding! Recipe was easy to follow and it turned out so good – perfect comfort food on a cold rainy evening
Thank you, David!
I made this for Thanksgiving. It was such a hit that I have been asked to make it for friends bday dinner. So it is in the oven…and been there for about 1.5 hours. I just realized I didn’t reduce the wine beforehand like the recipe calls for. Will it be okay????? PLEASE HELP!!!Mayday Mayday….praying it will work out.
Hi Mel! I’m glad you and your friends loved the recipe! The main reason we reduce the wine is to evaporate alcohol and enhance the flavors. I think it still will come out good but you might not have that rich deep flavor from the reduced wine. Let me know how it came out 😉
Am I able to cook this on the stove the whole time instead of transferring to the oven as I don’t have a dutch oven to use yet.
Hi Karolyn. No, you need to cook the ribs in the oven. If you don’t have a dutch oven, you can sear the meat and vegetables on a skillet and then transfer everything to a deep casserole dish and cover it with foil.
Made these for dinner tonight. Flavor was incredible, so tasty, I can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow! My only negative was that the meat and braising liquid both seemed too fatty? Maybe that’s just how short ribs are or maybe I got an extra fatty cow? They all looked the same in the store and I even trimmed off some excess fat before searing? Just curious if this is just the norm with short ribs?
Hi Denise! The short ribs should be a bit fatty but the not too much. It could be the particular cut you got, it’s hard to say. If you refrigerated some leftovers, you can scoop out some emulsified fat from the top before reheating the rest, that will reduce a large amount of fat.
Absolutely fantastic! I had to improvise as I didn’t have any tomato paste (I know, I know) so I shot about a tablespoon of reduced sugar ketchup in. Also, added a little Maagi as I put it in everything. Had an open bottle of a red blend and it was perfect. Kept the veggies and served on the side. Amazing flavor all around!
Thank you, Vicki! Good job on improvising!
I was wondering if you could substitute pork ribs for the beef? We don’t eat beef, but the rest of the recipe sounds delightful.