Braised Beef Short Ribs with Pomme Purée
Basically a hug, but edible.
Okay. This one’s a little bit of a flex.
Not because it’s hard — it’s not — but because it looks and tastes like you did something wild. Like “a chef made this, 100%". And you know what? You kinda did.
These short ribs are braised low and slow and they end up so tender, packed with flavor, and fall apart delicious. And we’re serving them over pomme purée — which is a fancy French way of saying “mashed potatoes, but I'm better than you for making them this way.”
This is weekend energy. A date night meal that you're truly going to impress with! Do it on a weekend though, unlike me who did it on a weekday and didn't eat dinner until 9:30pm.
Video at bottom of post!!
Ingredients
For the Short Ribs:
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1kg beef short ribs
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1 medium yellow onion
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1 large carrot
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2 ribs celery
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1 tbsp all-purpose flour
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1 tbsp gochujang paste
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500ml red wine (dry and decent)
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500ml beef stock
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5 cloves garlic, whole
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Fresh thyme sprigs
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2 bay leaves
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Salt + black pepper
For the Sauce:
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3 large shallots, sliced
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~200g crimini mushrooms, sliced
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Braising liquid (from the short ribs)
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2–3 tbsp cold butter, cubed
For the Pomme Purée:
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~9 small yellow potatoes (or ~2.5 lbs)
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250ml heavy cream
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4 tbsp cold butter, cubed
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Salt + white pepper, to taste
Method
Step 1: Brown That Beef
Season the short ribs aggressively with salt, pepper, and flour. Sear them in a big pot or Dutch oven — work in batches so they get that golden crust. Once browned on all sides, remove and set aside.
Step 2: Build the Base
In the same pot, toss in your chopped onion, carrot, and celery. Medium heat. Cook until softened and starting to brown. Stir in the gochujang and let it toast for 30 seconds.
Pour in the red wine and scrape up all the crusty bits from the bottom. Let it reduce slightly for a few minutes.
Step 3: Braise
Add short ribs back to the pot. Pour in the beef stock. Add whole garlic cloves, bay leaves, and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover, and braise on low heat for about 2 hours, until fall-apart tender.
Once done, remove the short ribs and set them aside. Strain the braising liquid into a bowl — we’re reducing this into a sauce.
Step 4: Build That Sauce
Wipe out your pot and add a bit of oil. Sauté shallots until soft and jammy, then add in sliced mushrooms. Cook until golden. Pour in the strained braising liquid and bring to a simmer. Reduce by half, then turn off the heat and stir in cold cubed butter until glossy and smooth.
You’ll want to drink this sauce. Like, for real.
Step 5: Pomme Purée (Mashed Potatoes, but looking down at other mashed potatoes)
While the ribs are braising, boil peeled and cubed potatoes in salted water until fork-tender. Drain and pass through a ricer or food mill if you’ve got one. You do essentially need one for this method, but you can also pass them through a fine mesh sieve or tamis screen as well.
Heat cream and butter in a saucepan until bubbling. Add in the potatoes and stir until ultra smooth. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. You can use black pepper, the white pepper is solely to not have black flecks in our smooth potatoes.
Step 6: Plate
Spoon a buttery cloud of purée onto a plate. Nestle a short rib on top. Ladle that rich, thick glossy sauce all over. Add some chopped parsley, flaky salt, or a green thing if you're trying to impress.
Final Thoughts
Sticky, rich, and melt-in-your-mouth tender. The kind of meal that makes your whole place smell incredible and has people thinking you trained in France. It’s hearty, comforting, and just a little fancy. In other words: peak #comfortcore.
If you want to make your life easier, grab a few tools from the Willow & Wisk store.
And hey — if this kind of cozy chaos is your vibe, follow along on YouTube and socials so you don’t miss the next drop.
More fall-apart goodness coming soon, but in the meantime you can check out some of my other comforting meals here!
Garlic Confit Chili Oil Noodles
8 Cozy One Pot Meals
The Best Chicken Lasagna (With Hand-rolled Pasta)