Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheesy Horseradish Grits
These Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheesy Horseradish Grits are decadent and finished with a sweet and sour Porter Sauce. Divine.
To get to a recipe for these Braised Beef Short Ribs, I took a somewhat circuitous path with my blog.
In 2010 I realized I wasn’t going to be heading either east or west to attend blogging conferences like many. I owned a web development business and the demands of that full time job plus single parenting didn’t afford me the luxury of taking off for parts unknown yet I yearned to meet more of ‘my kind.’
Not one to sit and hope someone else will do something I wished done; I connected with another local blogger and we started a Meetup Group inviting local Denver bloggers to join us for a meet and greet. One of them, Karen, offered to make this dish for my blog when I was in the middle of a move…and yes, I hated turning over the goods but the end results were so worth it.
That was a very long time ago and so much has changed…distance and Covid saw the group dissipate and the company who provided me with these fantastic short ribs are no more…but these ribs remain stellar!
From Karen…
To show off this delicious beef, I really wanted to prepare Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheesy Horseradish Grits, a standout dish that would do it justice, but there was only one problem. I needed Barb’s short ribs to make it. After a couple of days of hinting around she finally got the message and handed them over. 🙂
I could tell that this was a real sacrifice for her because as I pried her fingers off the package, I swore I saw tears welling up in her eyes . . . but I took them anyway. Ahhhh, the things we do for our blogs.
These Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheesy Horseradish Grits were worth making her cry (just kidding)…I gave her some too! Great beef and a great recipe for braised beef short ribs and you’ve got a ‘company is coming’ recipe to add to your repertoire!
Please Note: I know these photos are awful. Someone else took them, I did not get the originals and now Google expects images to be 1200 pixels wide. What to do? I’ve made them bigger but I know they’re awful. Thankfully the food is still great! 🙂
More Special Occasion Main Courses
Braised Beef Short Ribs with Cheesy Horseradish Grits
Ingredients
For the Short Ribs and Porter Sauce
- 2 ½ pounds beef short ribs meaty bone-in, approximately 4 large
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons light olive oil
- 12 ounces porter beer stout or your favorite dark beer (Since I was using Colorado beef, I used a Colorado porter from Left Hand Brewery in Longmont)
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 clove garlic large clove, thinly sliced
- 1 medium onion sliced into quarters from end to end
- 1 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons lightly packed dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- Fresh parsley or a couple of chopped green onions for garnish
For the Grits
- 2 ½ water
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup quick cooking grits
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ⅓ cup half and half use up to 1/2 cup depending on how soft you like your grits
- ½ cup sharp white cheddar cheese grated
- ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic
- 2 teaspoons horseradish
- White pepper to taste
Instructions
To Make the Short Ribs
- Season short ribs with salt and pepper to taste. Dust on all sides with flour; set aside.
- Heat a medium size skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and heat until it is hot. Add the short ribs and brown on all sides. Transfer to a slow cooker set to low.
- Pour the porter over the top then add the thyme, garlic and onion; cook for approximately 4 – 5 hours on low or on high for 3 hours or until they are fall apart tender. This can also be done by cooking them in an oven proof dish with a tight fitting lid in a 275 degree oven for approximately 3 hours.
- Remove the short ribs from the slow cooker and carefully transfer to a large plate, cover to keep warm.
- Pour the juices from the slow cooker through a strainer into a medium size sauce pan (they should measure approximately 2 cups). Cook juices uncovered over medium heat until they start to simmer.
- Stir in tomato paste, butter, brown sugar and vinegar. Reduce heat to maintain a slow simmer. Cook to reduce until mixture is slightly thick, approximately 15 – 20 minutes.
- Serve short ribs over a bed of grits (recipe follows), drizzle with sauce and sprinkle with parsley or sliced green onions.
To Make the Grits
- Place water in a medium size sauce pan over medium high heat. When water boils, add the salt and then slowly whisk in grits. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for approximately 5 minutes until water is absorbed and grits are slightly tender.
- Remove from the cover and whisk in the half and half, cheese, garlic, horseradish and white pepper. Whisk until cheese is melted.
- Serve while hot.
I have someone who is allergic to Balsamic Vinegar, what could I use as a sub?
There really isn’t a substitute so you could just eliminate it or use a like amount of red wine vinegar with a bit of sugar added to mimic that slight sweetness of balsamic.
These are the best short ribs I have ever made and really close to the best I have had in a restaurant. I used a Bourbon Barrel Stout and the gravy was out of this world. I will make this over and over! Thank you.
I am always looking for new recipes to try…this one sounds so delicious! I can’t wait to make it!
WOW! This is such a great beer recipe! Would love you to bring it by my Facebook beer recipe party on 4/20/13.
These look awesome and I just adore her recipe and have -undoubtedly- voted for it. Everything looks delicious!
This was like a two for one treat…finding Creative Culinary and Karen’s recipe.
Aw…how sweet, thanks Karen.
Oh Barb, if you’re looking, you gave us a treat with this dish of short ribs. My goodness they look good! bugger! I can’t vote because I don’t have a zipcode. Send me one and I’ll vote 🙂
Well, I’m at 80111 in CO; you can vote with us! 🙂
YUM! this looks amazing!!!
My hubby is a huge fan of beef, so I cannot wait to give this recipe a try. (And my man forces me to try it as well:))
This just looks SO tasty, Barb!! 🙂 YUM Great idea!
Short ribs are debatably my favorite food – when they’re on a menu, I order them, and these look sooo good! And cheesy grits? Yummy! Need to try this mean.
Oh my word! It’s 9:00 in the morning and I’m craving a plate of these short ribs right now. I can just taste that combination with the porter, thyme, brown sugar, and balsamic vinegar. Yum and yum.
Karen, those short ribs are gorgeous! Beautifully done. Good Luck with the contest. I hope you win ! You deserve to!
Barb, did she bring you a teeny weeny bit of leftovers or not?
I’ve been promised a bite; that’s all I ask for . One little bite. OK, maybe two. 🙂
So gorgeous! I can’t imagine how good those grits are with these ribs!
Hardest part about a guest post? I didn’t get any either. Seems abjectly unfair doesn’t it? Hoping my pal saved me a bite!
Ummm… those short ribs look fantastic!! Loved the story about 5280 Beef and Pork as well – it’s always interesting to talk to the people who raise our food, isn’t it?
One thing I’ve learned is just how passionate they are about both their animals and the quality the provide to the consumers. I’m lucky to have met fellows from two smaller ranches but they’ve got me sold…and their beef is simply amazing. I’m a bit hooked.
Great photos! Love the highlights. And such a nice recipe – short ribs have loads of flavor, and this recipe really does them proud. Wonderful guest post – thanks so much.
Hi Barb and Karen, A great recipe for sure– beef, beer and the crock pot does most of the work? This is a recipe for me! Glad to learn about 5280 Beef, will be sure to check them out.
Beautifully done guest post and a gorgeous looking beef short-rib dish!
Karen, these look incredible!!! Plus, the sound of cheesy horseradish grits completely has my mouth watering! Bravo on a beautiful plate of comfort!
I don’t think you could have come up with a more delicious looking dish than this. You did such a wonderful job showcasing the beef and then that grits… well, I am a sucker for cheesy grits, so you definitely won me over with that.