Braised Short Ribs Over Celery Root Puree

Originally published on February 23, 2015

I love celery, and there are many things that I love even more about celery root. It’s really like celery on crack, or the freshest celery you will ever smell or taste. But while celery is crisp and delightful to eat raw, celery root needs to be broken down a bit more. It’s quite hard but yet, the texture when you bite into it is also somewhat spongy. If you must eat it raw, make sure that you slice it very finely. I myself prefer it boiled or poached, then churned into this smooth and beautiful celery root puree. Placed underneath these beautiful short ribs, the sauce will run through it like tiny little rivers and if you do it right, you’ll be lucky enough to scoop up a bit of puree with every bite of short ribs. I also sauteed some mushrooms to go with the entire thing, and tucked in some potatoes roasted in goose fat.

Ingredients:

For the short ribs:
4 beef short ribs 
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large onions, roughly chopped
3 celery stalks, roughly chopped
2 large carrots, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic, smashed
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 cups red wine
4 cups beef stock
Salt
Pepper 

For the celery root puree:

1 clove garlic, smashed
1 sprig fresh sage
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 head celery root, about 1 1/2 pounds, peeled and cut into 1″ pieces
4 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter 
3 tablespoons fresh chives, sliced
Salt
Pepper

Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2.) Season short ribs generously with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. When hot, add short ribs (in batches if necessary, to avoid overcrowding) and brown on all sides so that a nice crust forms. Remove ribs from pot, transfer to a plate, and lower heat to medium.

3.) To the pot add the onions, celery stalks, carrots, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Stir to combine and coat all ingredients in oil, and cook until vegetables are just softened, about five minutes.

4.) Turn heat to medium-high and add the red wine to the pan. Let boil for 2 minutes, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan as you do.

5.) Return the short ribs back to the pan, add the beef stock, and bring the entire pot up to a boil. Remove from heat and cover the entire pot tightly with a lid or aluminum foil.

6.) Place the pot into the preheated oven and cook for 3 hours, until the short ribs are cooked through and the meat is just about falling off the bone.

7.) Remove the pot from the oven, uncover and transfer the short ribs to a platter or casserole dish. Cover to keep warm. Strain the sauce in the large pot into a large bowl to remove the large pieces. Pour the sauce back into the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and let the sauce boil and reduce to about 1/2.

8.) While the sauce is reducing, make the celery root puree. Place the garlic, sage, thyme, and celery root into a medium-sized pot. Add enough milk just to cover (you might not need all of it). Bring to a simmer over medium heat and continue simmering until the celery root is tender, about 20 minutes.

9.) Strain the mixture into a blender, discarding the herbs stocks and adding the large pieces of celery root to the blender. Add the butter, chives, salt and pepper, and puree until the mixture is smooth but still somewhat thick. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk but be careful because you don’t want it too thin, either.

10.) Spoon a bit of celery root puree onto a plate and place one or two short ribs on top. Spoon the reduced sauce over top of the entire thing.

11.) Serve and enjoy!