Roman Braised Beef Food

TANGY BRAISED SHORT RIBS

Steps:

• Season short ribs with salt and pepper at least 1 hour (at room temperature) and as much as 48 hours (covered and refrigerated) in advance.
• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Working in batches, sear short ribs until deeply golden brown on both large flat sides, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer short ribs to a large plate or cutting board and drain all but about 2 tablespoons fat from the pot. Discard remaining fat. Repeat with remaining short ribs. Drain all fat from the pot and carefully wipe out. (No need to wash, just get rid of any scorched bits.)
• In the same pot over medium-high, heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil, and add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions and garlic get a bit of color, 4 to 5 minutes. Add honey and cook, stirring until it starts to bubble furiously, turning a darker amber brown and sticking to the bottom of the pot as it cooks.
• Add vinegar and soy sauce, and, using a wooden spoon or spatula, scrape up the bits on the bottom of the pot. Bring to a strong simmer and cook to reduce by about half, 5 to 8 minutes. Add broth and thyme, and bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper and add short ribs back in, bone-side up, making sure they are as submerged in that braising liquid as possible. Cover the pot and place in the oven. Do not look at it or remove the lid for 3 hours. (Nothing bad will happen, promise.)
• After 3 hours, check the short ribs, they should be extremely tender and nearly falling apart, almost having the jiggly texture of a baked custard or Jell-O. (If not, continue roasting another 20 to 30 minutes.) Remove from oven.
• At this stage, you can remove the lid and using a spoon, carefully skim as much of the top layer of fat as possible. Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees, and return the pot to the oven, uncovered, to let the short ribs brown a bit on top and thicken the braising liquid a bit, another 35 to 45 minutes. (Alternatively, you can remove the short ribs from the oven, let them cool at room temperature and place in them in the fridge, overnight. When ready to serve, remove them from the fridge and using a spoon, scrape off the solidified fat on the top layer. Return the short ribs, covered, to a 325-degree oven until totally warmed through, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the lid and increase temperature to 425 degrees, and continue to cook, uncovered, to let the short ribs brown a bit on top and reduce the braising liquid, another 35 to 45 minutes.)
• Meanwhile, combine parsley and chives in a small bowl and season with flaky salt.
• Remove the short ribs from the oven and serve straight from the pot or transfer them to a shallow bowl or plate with high sides, spooning the braising liquid over. Squeeze lemons over, letting the juice season the braising liquid. Sprinkle with parsley mixture before serving.

GRANDPA'S BRAISED BEEF

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat with a thin layer of extra-virgin olive oil. Add the onions, and garlic to the hot oil and sweat them until very soft and very light caramel in color, 20 to 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and reserve.
• Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add a thin layer of oil to the pan. Pat the meat dry and season very liberally with salt and pepper. Brown the meat to a deep brown all over, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Peel the potatoes and very thinly slice them lengthwise into planks. Slice the tomatoes working over a bowl to catch their juices.
• Arrange 1/2 the onions over top of the meat, season with salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon thyme. Arrange 1/2 the potatoes over the onions and dress the potatoes with a liberal drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon, salt, pepper, rosemary, and a handful freshly grated cheese. Top the potatoes with 1/2 the tomatoes and their juices, and season with salt and pepper. Scatter a few leaves of torn basil. Repeat the layers. Do not add basil to the top layer of tomatoes.
• Cover the pan and roast the meat in the oven until very tender, 4 hours. Cool and store for make-ahead meal.
• To reheat: Reheat, covered, in a preheated 325 degree F oven until warmed through, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Take off the lid of the pot, drizzle the top of the meat with oil, sprinkle with cheese, and broil to lightly crust the top. Cut down through the layers of the potatoes, tomatoes, and onions to portion the meat, serve in shallow bowls with crusty bread and pan juices.

LIDIA'S INSANELY DELICIOUS ITALIAN BEEF ROASTED IN BAROLO WINE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250° F. Season the roast with half the salt. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven set over medium-high heat. Brown the roast on all sides, about 8 minutes in all, then remove it to a platter.
• Add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic, and cook until the onions begin to wilt, about 6 minutes. Add the rosemary, sage leaves, grated nutmeg, peppercorns, dried porcini, and remaining teaspoon salt, and toss all together. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes, just until the vegetables soften, stirring frequently and scraping up the browned meat bits on the pan bottom; then lower the heat.
• Push the vegetables to the side, and return the seared roast to the cleared side of the pan. Pour in the bottles of wine and any meat juices that collected on the platter. The roast should be at least half submerged, so add beef stock as needed.
• Cover the pot, and heat until the wine is steaming but not boiling. Uncover the pan, and place it in the oven. After 30 minutes, rotate the roast so the exposed meat is submerged in the braising liquid. Braise this way, turning the meat in the pan every 30 minutes, for about 3 hours, until the meat is fork-tender. The liquid should not boil; if it does, pour in some cold water to stop the bubbling, and lower the oven temperature.
• After about 2½ hours or so, check the beef. If it is easily pierced with a fork, take the pan from the oven. Remove the meat to a platter, with the carrots and celery. Skim any fat from the braising juices, heat them to a boil, and reduce until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Pour it through a sieve set over a clean container. Press the juices well from the strained herbs and remaining vegetable pieces. Pour in any juices from the meat platter, and season the sauce to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. (If you are not going to serve it right away, put the meat and reserved vegetables in the sauce to rest and cool, for a couple of hours or overnight.)
• To serve: Slice the meat crosswise (easiest when it is cool). Pour a shallow layer of sauce into a wide skillet, and lay the slices in, overlapping. Heat the sauce to bubbling, spooning it over the beef, so the slices are lightly coated. Lift them with a broad spatula, and slide them onto a warm platter, fanned out. Heat the carrots and celery in the sauce, too, and arrange them on the platter. Serve, passing more heated sauce at the table.

ROMAN-STYLE BRAISED FENNEL

Steps:

• In a 12-inch high-sided skillet, melt butter over medium. Add shallots, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Add oil and garlic, and stir until fragrant, 1 minute. Add fennel, wine, lemon juice, oregano, parsley and 1½ cups of water, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high, stirring to evenly coat the fennel in the liquid. Arrange the fennel in an even layer.
• Cover, reduce heat to medium and braise until fennel is tender, about 30 minutes, stirring and flipping halfway through.
• Transfer fennel to a serving platter, and spoon over the shallots and sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley, and serve warm or at room temperature.