Bourbon-braised Short Ribs

Makes 16 small plates

Ingredients

4 ounces beef base, such as Better Than Bouillon

½ cup cabernet sauvignon or your favorite red wine

5 cups water, divided use

3 pounds boneless beef short ribs, divided into 3-ounce filets

Canola oil, salt, pepper

½ yellow onion, cut in large dice

2 carrots, cut in large dice

1 stalk celery, cut in large dice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

¼ cup brown sugar

¼ cup Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch, optional

½ cup bourbon

1 bay leaf

Garlic mashed potatoes (see recipe below) Herbed gremolata (see recipe below)

Directions

In a large container, combine the beef base, red wine and 2 cups water. Add the short ribs, turning them so they're well coated. Cover the container and transfer to the refrigerator. Let marinate overnight.

Heat oven to 300 degrees.

Remove meat from marinade; discard marinade. Pat meat dry, season generously with salt and pepper, then sear in a hot pan with canola oil until deeply browned on all sides.

In a Dutch oven, saute the onion, carrot and celery until lightly caramelized. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, Dijon, brown sugar and Worcestershire. Mix a tablespoon of water into the cornstarch to make a slurry, then add it along with the remaining water, bourbon and bay leaf. Nestle the short ribs filets into the pot until submerged. Bring to a boil, then cover and transfer to the oven to cook until completely tender, but not breaking apart, at least 90 minutes.

Remove short ribs from the braising mixture. Discard the bay leaf. Use a blender or immersion blender, to turn the braising liquid and veggies into a luscious sauce.

To serve, spoon about ¼ cup of mashed potatoes onto each small plate. Top with one short rib, spooning some of the thickened sauce over it. Garnish with herbed gremolata. Note: If any short ribs are left over, they can be sautéed the next morning into a hash with cubes of potatoes and topped with a fried egg. They'd also make an amazing quesadilla filling for lunch the next day.