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If you follow us over on Instagram, then you already know that we recently spent some time visiting Niagara Falls as part of a summer vacation road trip. We spent a few days on the Canadian side of the Falls and absolutely loved our visit!
It was my first time visiting Niagara Falls – and another “first” for me was eating Poutine – a classic Canadian dish of French fries topped with cheese curds and a brown gravy. Yesterday we showed you how to make Perfect French Fries at home. And tomorrow, we’ll be sharing our own Poutine recipe (inspired by our trip!) – but get ready today by making this incredible Beef Short Ribs Gravy!
Beef Short Ribs Gravy is made by cooking short ribs until they are fall-off-the-bone tender! Once cooked, the meat is removed from the bone and shredded – then added back into the cooking stock which has been thickened into a gravy.
Our Beef Short Ribs Gravy is shown here served over mashed potatoes, and tomorrow you’ll see it served as part of the Poutine – but any way you eat it – this is the ultimate comfort food! The gravy has a rich and savory flavor with a just touch of sweetness – thanks to the addition of dark ale in the gravy – and the flavors are incredible.
Although this recipe has a long cooking time – three and a half hours – it’s actually very easy to make. And, this Beef Short Ribs Gravy can be made in advance and reheated just before serving.
Recipe loosely adapted from chow.com
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Beef Short Ribs Gravy
*Note: To make a thinner gravy, just use the ¼ cup of flour and omit the extra two tablespoons listed in the ingredients
Ingredients
- 5 pounds meaty beef short ribs (about 8 ribs)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups thickly sliced shallots (6 ounces in weight)
- 1 1/2 cups thickly sliced onion halves (about one medium to large onion)
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 12–ounce bottle dark ale or stout beer
- 3 large sprigs fresh thyme, left on the stem
- 3 large sprigs flat leaf parsley, left on the stems
- 1 1/2 quarts vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup butter ( 1/2 a stick)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (*See Note above)
- Additional salt and pepper to taste
- Mashed potatoes (see recipe here) for serving
Instructions
- Season the ribs with the salt and pepper.
- Heat a large oven proof Dutch oven over medium high heat and add oil.
- Once hot, add half the ribs and sear on all sides for 2-3 minutes per side or until browned. Remove to a platter and repeat for rest of ribs. Remove the second batch to the same platter.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Using same pot, turn the heat to medium and add the shallots and onions and cook for about three minutes or until just slightly cooked.
- Add tomato paste and cook and stir for one minute.
- Add the ale and stir and cook until reduced by half.
- Add the sprigs of thyme and parsley, stock and Worcestershire sauce. Add the seared ribs to the pot, bring to a boil, cover and place in oven for three hours with lid slightly ajar. Halfway through cooking, turn ribs, cover again and finish cooking with lid slightly ajar.
- If you are serving with mashed potatoes cook them now.
- With a pair of tongs, remove ribs and bones to a platter to cool.
- Remove and discard the thyme stems. The parsley will have disintegrated into the sauce.
- Pour the liquid into a container and with a ladle, skim off and discard the fat that floats to the top. I removed an entire cup of fat.
- Once the meat has cooled enough to handle, separate the meat from the bones, fat, gristle and sinew. Reserve meat and if not already shredded, shred with two forks. Discard bones and gristle. You should have 1 ½ pounds of cooked meat.
- Place butter in same pot that the ribs were cooked in and melt over medium heat.
- Add flour and stir to form a roux. Note, feel free to omit the two tablespoons of flour and just use the ¼ cup if you like your gravy on the thin side. Cook this mixture for about three minutes. Then one third at a time, add liquid back in whisking at each third.
- Adjust seasoning and add shredded beef back in. If too thick, thin down with a little water.
- Serve over mashed potatoes or rice or use in Poutine (recipe coming tomorrow)
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Martha your recipes are always the best! This one for beef short ribs is certainly no exception! They look so delicious and comforting. I wish I had some for breakfast right now!
Thank you Renee! 🙂 (I’ll join you for breakfast!)
Hello,
Wanting to try this recipe today but all I could find at grocery store were regular ribs. Will they still work for this recipe?
Hi Brittany – So sorry for the delay in responding – not sure if you’ve already tried making the recipe?! The short ribs have more meat than regular ribs so ideally that is what you want to use for this recipe.
That is some serious comfort food right there.
Ribs look irresistible! And they are tender.. and with gravy.. Yummy!
Thanks Medeja!
I have always wanted to visit Niagara Falls (and try real Poutine… IN Canada) – sounds fun! And these short ribs are totally making my mouth water…so delicious!
Wow this is a great recipe! These remind me of my dad, he loves them!
Ive never been to Niagra but I love this recipe!!
I feel like running out to the store to get the ingredients to make this right now!! Niagara falls is only about an hour from me so I go there once in a while – so fun! Poutine…mmmmmm 🙂
Hello, this recipe looks delicious! At what point do you add the seared ribs back to the Dutch oven? It doesn’t say in the instructions above.
Thank you!
Hi Elvira – Thank you SO MUCH for your question – it would be in Step 8 – before putting the pot in the oven. Thanks for alerting us to the error – I will correct the recipe right away!
Now this is comfort food my whole family will LOVE!
Mmmmm. These take me back to my childhood. My mom used to make something similar for Sunday dinners. I haven’t had these in years. Time to try them again!
Sounds like my childhood too Kathy! 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe!