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.
Made this recipe as directed (always on a first pass–modifications later…). It was a delicious hit! I used my hand blender to blend the gravy with the vegetables, leaving about 1/3 the veg in the now ultra-silky, just-thick-enough gravy. No additional cornstarch needed due to the blending. I let the ribs cook for 3 hours. Honestly, I think 2-2 1/2 would have been enough…next time.
If I wanted to cut the recipe in half would I cut the cook time in half as well? TIA!
Bailey, I would not cut the cook time down. It’s not the volume of meat that determines the cook time, it’s the toughness of the cut. Short ribs need plenty of time to cook to break down the meat fibers until they are tender. Hope this helps!
Can’t wait to make for my husband and my mother in law this weekend. I want to do some prep ahead of time. I noticed your name ahead note but do you think I could make up to step 8. Refrigerate. Then cook the 3 hours the next day ?
I don’t usually leave reviews on recipes.. but this one DESERVES IT! Omg so delicious! I followed the recipe but skipped the bay leaf and served it over mashed potatoes, we inhaled this recipe and there were no leftovers! Definitely making it again!! Also for some of the comments about meat being tough.. you have to cook it for the amount stated, my short ribs were tender fall off the bone yummy! Thank you Veronika!! I’ll be following you for more great recipes!
Can this be adapted to a instant pot ?
This recipe deserves more than five stars!
The only deviation for me was I added a red bell pepper to the mirepoix. Then, when the meat was done, I added 4oz. of sliced mushrooms to the food and cooked for an additional 10 minutes.
Looking forward to making this again.
However, my wife is not a fan of short ribs, and I was wondering what other cut of meat you would recommend?
I made this for dinner and put it over some Parmesan polenta and it was delicious. My celery went bad so i was bummed about not being able to add that it but next time! So good!
It’s so so delicious! I’ve never made short ribs before, and followed the recipe exactly. It’s easy to put together and tastes great. My husband loved it, so we’ll definitely have it again. Lol it was so worth the extra stop at the liquor store for the wine! Thanks for sharing it!
Would it be ok to leave out the bay leaf or would it change the flavor?
Hi Maria, you can easily skip the bay leaf in this recipe.
Amazing and perfect comfort meal! I made a few modifications, but nothing earth shattering. The meat fell right off the bone. Saving this for another round!
Thank you so much, Erin!
This was scrumptious! A few modifications here and there, but a real showstopper! Thanks!
Thank you so much, Kate!
I’ve made 100’s of recipes over the years all across the internet and never commented until now. This is by far THE BEST, easiest dinner to put together. I’ve made it twice now, once for family, and again multiplied for a large Christmas dinner crowd. OMG, beyond amazing. The meat falls apart it’s so tender and the flavor is like I’ve never tasted. Give it a try. I served it over mashed potatoes with a splash of the gravy both times.
Thank you so much, Jenna! I’m so happy you and your family enjoy this recipe 😉
My husband and I made this for dinner. It was delicious! Meat so very tender and flavorful. Look forward to making it for company. I will say my gravy was very greasy. Next time I will strain the vegetables and separate out the grease before thickening. Thanks for a delicious, easy to follow recipe.
Thank you, Debbie! The gravy might get a bit greasy if the short ribs had too much fat on them. There are two ways you can fix it. The first, you can trim the excess fat from the meat before you sear and cook it. Second, after everything it cooked, take the meat out and scoop the excess grease from the top of gravy with a spoon.
You mention reheating the next day in the oven before serving. Any tips on how that works best? Just reheat it in the wine sauce and dutch oven? Temperature?
Thank you!
Hi Tammy, you can reheat it in the same Dutch oven at 350F for about 20-30 minutes or until it’s warm.
My favourite go to comfort recipe! This is a rich flavourful recipe that your family and guests will want more of. I don’t add the wine but I use Campbell’s Beef broth with red wine and its delicious. Making it again today on this cold Alberta winter day. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Thank you so much, Heather! I’m so happy you and your family enjoy this recipe 😉