Our blue spotlighted recipe for Beef Chuck Short Ribs is brought to you by Chef Darnell Japp ( @chefd_catering).
Chef D grew up on a small farm about 20 miles outside of Eston, Saskatchewan. He began his career at the Calgary Winter Club after graduating from the SAIT Culinary program with a Red Seal Distinction. From modest beginnings, Chef D progressed his culinary career to the top of his field. Including being the Executive Sou-Chef at Rouge in 2010 when his restaurant was awarded 60th place on the S. Pellegrino top 100 restaurants in the world. For those of you, like me, who are unaware of this ranking. It is the most prestigious award a restaurant can achieve and only two Canadian restaurants have ever made the cut. Another noteworthy mention in Chef D’s resume is winning Bronze at the Canada’s Great Kitchen Party in 2019. An invite-only cooking competition that helps fundraise money for worthy charities all across Canada. In fact, Chef Darnell Japp has recently started his own Catering business, Chef’D Catering, to share his love of cooking with the local community.
Low and Slow Beef Chuck Short Ribs Made Easy
By Daniel Chamberland
What the heck is comfort food?
As a born and raised Calgarian, I am quite used to the extreme cold we have. When its anything above -20, you’ll likely find me in a t-shirt and jeans. I was bred for this. Yet, when I come home from an honest day’s work, I want something that will warm me up and give me the energy I need to brave the cold for another day.
To me, comfort food is something I would actually sit down and enjoy before running back out the door to play hockey, instead of just scarfing something down to simply put fuel in the tank. It warms my bones and keeps me going when I need to grind out a penalty kill or endure yet another last minute change on the jobsite or at the office.
On top of it all, comfort food reminds me of home. Whether it was enjoying my Nana’s world-famous homemade soup, or sitting down to a hearty bowl of beef stroganoff, I always connect comfort food to those fond memories of spending time with family and friends.
The Beef Chuck Short Rib Might Just Be The Perfect Comfort Food
I was familiar with roast chicken, beef, and pork dinners growing up. However, I’ve never experienced beef short ribs before. Although sometimes overlooked, beef short ribs pack a lot of flavour for a very reasonable price point.
Let’s start with me being a novice to the butchering game. I discovered, with the help of the butchers at North Range Craft Butchers, that there are nine major areas that categorize where a cut of beef originates from.
According to the North Range in-house butchers, and the experts at Canada Beef, the beef chuck short ribs comes from, as you probably already guessed, the chuck cut. The chuck cut is located on the shoulder of the cow. Within the chuck, there are several sub-sections. We will be focusing on the cross rib section of the chuck, as that is where the MVP of our recipe, the beef short rib, comes from. Alongside the short rib are several other cuts: the cross rib, chuck rib roast, and the cross rib simmering steak. All of whom, are great when cooked slow to encourage the melding of flavours such as wine, fresh herbs, and my all-time favourite…garlic.
Beef short ribs come primarily in two styles: a Flanken cut, or more commonly known as a Maui, Azika, or Korean Rib. It is the cross-cut of several ribs that resemble buttons, best eaten with the hands and a napkin. The English-style version, that North Range has to offer, takes full advantage of this tender piece of beef; leaving each bone individual and loaded with meat. When slow cooked with low heat it’s flavours intensify and get even more “beefy”. Slow and low makes this that melt in your mouth and the meat comes right off of the bone just by looking at them a certain way. The result is a robust meal that makes you feel like you are wrapped in a warm blanket and the flavour sticks with you for the whole night.
Let’s Get Cooking!
The old classic method used here is braising. This is easier than it sounds, but it is best to have a lazy day at home planned as this recipe likes to take it’s time. Set aside 30 minutes for prep and about 4 hours minimum for the slow cooking. This is an investment that pays off big time though!
Chef D and I tried this dish in the crock pot as well. The best thing about this method is that you get to leave the house or at least get out of the kitchen for a while. That’s because crock pots can be very safe left on their own. Unlike a Jack Russel Terrier, they are good with next to no supervision!
Here’s how this all panned out!
Low & Slow - Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
Ingredients
5 pcs bone in short rib (approx.. 1.25 kg)
2 pcs yellow onion quartered
1 carrot peeled & rough chopped
2 pcs celery rough chopped
2-3 pcs garlic clove
3-3.5 L beef stock
500ml red wine
¼ cup cold diced butter
I bunch fresh thyme
3-4 fresh bay leaf
Salt & fresh ground black pepper
Canola oil
Method
Day 1: cut open short ribs & season with cracked pepper & layer with fresh thyme & bay leaf, cover with plastic wrap & allow to sit overnight.
Day 2: un-cover short rib, remove herbs and set aside, pat dry meat with paper towel.
- Sear on high heat with canola oil until dark brown on all sides, add veg & garlic, brown slightly.
- Deglaze with red wine, add beef stock & herbs, bring to low simmer, cover and into the oven @ 275-300F for 3-4 hours.
- Allow to cool in liquid overnight.
Crock Pot Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
Ingredients
5 pcs bone in short rib (approx.. 1.25 kg)
1 pcs yellow onion quartered
1 carrot peeled & rough chopped
1 pcs celery rough chopped
3 pcs garlic clove
3-3.5 L beef stock
250ml red wine
3-4 TBSP cold diced butter
I bunch fresh thyme
3-4 fresh bay leaf
Salt & fresh ground black pepper
Canola oil
Method
1) Un-cover short rib, pat dry meat with paper towel, season with salt & pepper
4) Sear on high heat with canola oil until dark brown on all sides, remove ribs & add veg & garlic, brown slightly.
5) Deglaze with red wine. add all ingredients to your crock pot except butter, cover and cook for 3-4 hours until tender.
6) Pour braising liquid into a small sauce pot and reduce by half, whisk in 3-4 knobs of butter until thickened slightly.
7) Serve with braised short rib & garnish with coarse sea salt.
At North Range Craft Butchers, one thing is clear, we are all a big family here and have always encouraged the idea of building a longer table. Rather than a taller fence. Come join the North Range family at NorthRange.ca.
On this journey I uncovered a simple truth, that anyone with hungry mouths to feed, the right ingredients, and the right recipe playbook can make even the most uncommon beef cuts extraordinary. So I encourage you to grab a good book and snuggle up to the beef chuck short rib for a day of relaxation and a dinner to remember.
