This post is a collaboration with Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. on behalf of the Beef Checkoff. I received compensation, but all opinions and recipes are my own.
‘Tis the season! The season for all things festive, jolly, cozy, glittery, and for so many holiday gatherings. ‘Tis also the season for all the crazy-busy, OMG-how-will-I-get-it-all-done, panic-mode chaos. Riiiight?! Yeah. Well, I can’t manage your holiday craziness for you, but I dooo have a delicious, deceptively easy, yet highly impressive recipe that you can keep up your sleeve this holiday season! Your secret weapon recipe, if you will. My Pomegranate Braised Short Ribs can be served up for a festive holiday appetizer or made for a special dinner when you want to treat yourself, your date, or maybe just impress the in-laws. However you serve it, it’s going to be a hit with your guests!
You have to admit that no other protein does it quite like beef. There’s just something about serving a flavorful cut of beef to your guests – it’s got a wow factor that you simply can’t get with any other protein, ya know what I mean? Plus there are so many great cuts of beef to choose from and an equal number of ways to cook it – the culinary possibilities are seriously endless!
For this recipe I wanted a dish to impress, but not one that added to anyone’s holiday stress, so I chose to braise some beautiful, high-quality short ribs. If you’ve never cooked short ribs, you’re in for a treat. We spend a few minutes working with the ribs initially, but then we send them off to finish in the oven until they become the most succulent, fall-off-the-bone ribs you’ve ever had. And while they’re cooking away in the oven?! You can be off tackling that mile-long to do list or helping the elves wrap or whatever it is you gotta do. So. Many. Wins.
Alrighty, let’s get to business. To start things off, we’re going to gather all of our ingredients. We’re going to be searing the ribs and then creating a delicious sweet and savory braising liquid for the ribs to slow cook in.
We’ll start by dusting our short ribs with a tiny bit of flour. This will help create the perfect golden crust. To sear them we just heat a little oil in a heavy, oven-proof pan (Dutch oven) and let it get nice and hot. We cook the ribs for several minutes on all sides until the outside is caramelized with a crisp crust. Once that’s done we set the ribs aside and sauté an onion with a little bit of salt, pepper, and garlic. After about 5-6 minutes we’re practically done – just have to get the rest of the ingredients in the pot. I told ya it was easy!
Before we add the remaining ingredients, we sprinkle in a little flour that’ll help thicken our sauce and then I like to de-glaze the pan with a little bit of the beef broth. There’s a lot of flavor in those brown little bits on the bottom of the pan and now’s our chance to release it! A few splashes of broth will help loosen up all those little flavor-filled bites. Alright, now goes in the rest of our line up. Return the ribs to the pan and add in some pomegranate juice, beef broth, brown sugar, fresh rosemary, and a cinnamon stick. Cover and place in the oven at 325F for 2 1/2 – 3 hours.
Byyyyye, catch ya on the flip side!
*fast forward 2 1/2 hours and all of my Christmas wrapping is done and my house is spotless and….* HELLO, THERE! Look at that beautifully, bubbling, beefy pot of heaven. #AllTheHeartEyes
The beef is literally falling off of the bone, and the sauce is just perfect. It’s rich from the short ribs and slightly sweet and tangy from the pomegranate juice. The rosemary compliments the savory notes while the cinnamon adds just the perfect hint of warm spice. Heeeavenly, I tell ya.
To Serve As An Appetizer: Pomegranate Braised Short Ribs on Crispy Polenta Cakes
To serve as an appetizer, I thought it would be fun to pair a classic combo – short ribs and polenta! When the beef first went in the oven, I quickly cooked up a pot of polenta, spread it into a 13×9 pan, let it cool, and then stored it in the fridge until I was ready to use it. Cooled polenta turns solid and makes a great base for all kinds of yummy toppings!
I cut the polenta into squares and then reheated until the outside was crispy. I topped each square with some of our shredded short ribs and garnished with fresh pomegranate arils and chopped parsley. Talk about a way to impress your party guests!
See polenta cake recipe below.
To Serve As An Entree: Pomegranate Braised Short Ribs over Caulimash
To serve as a hearty entreé, I made a batch of my cauliflower mash. It’s makes a creamy base and the cauliflower puree pairs perfectly with the succulent, rich short ribs.
To make the cauliflower puree I simply boil cauliflower florets in salted water with a few cloves of garlic. Once the florets are tender, I puree everything in a food processor with a little bit of butter, cream cheese, and milk. Simple and delicious!
I top the caulimash with a couple of whole short ribs, a few spoonfuls of the braising liquid, and then garnish with fresh pomegranate arils and chopped parsley.
The short ribs would also be delicious served over mashed potatoes, creamy polenta, or a mash of butternut squash and/or sweet potatoes.
See Caulimash recipe below.
Both of these options are a delicious way to serve up these short ribs and ya know what? The recipe totally makes enough for both! Yup – more winning!
I made a batch of the short ribs and shredded just enough to serve on top of my crispy polenta cakes. The next night we enjoyed the leftovers for dinner over a bowl of my caulimash. Gotta love a good two-for-one recipe!
Put this one on your holiday to-do list because I promise it’ll be worth it! If you are looking for more inspiration on how to #BeefUpTheHolidays, make sure to visit Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner.
See recipe notes for information on WW SmartPoints.
- 3 lbs bone in beef Short Ribs
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 cup pomegranate juice
- 3 cups low sodium beef broth
- 1 onion, quartered and sliced thin
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt + extra to season ribs
- ¼ tsp pepper + extra to season ribs
- ¼ cup flour, divided
- 1 cinnamon stick
- arils from 1 pomegranate, to garnish
- fresh parsley, to garnish, if desired
- Preheat oven to 325F. Season short ribs with a little bit of salt and pepper and lightly dust with 2 tbsp of the flour (if there is leftover flour from dusting you should reserve it).
- Heat oil in a heavy oven-safe pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Once oil is hot add short ribs and brown on all sides for several minutes until they seared and have a nice crust. (You may need to do two batches if all the ribs won't fit in a single layer). Remove the seared ribs from the pot and set aside.
- Add onion to the pot with a few ounces of beef broth. Scrape up any browned bits of meat. Season onion with ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper. Cook until onions are soft, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook 1 more minute until garlic is fragrant. Sprinkle onions with the remaining 2 tbsp of flour plus any flour remaining from dusting the ribs. Stir well.
- Add in a few ounces of broth and scrape up any more brown bits. Add in the remaining broth, pomegranate juice, brown sugar, rosemary, and cinnamon stick.
- Return ribs to the pot and place in oven for 2½ - 3 hours, until they are fall-off-the-bone tender.
- If using for polenta cake appetizer shred short ribs until you have 10 oz of meat. If using for entree with caulimash, leave short ribs whole. See below of polenta cake and caulimash recipes.
- 1½ cups uncooked polenta
- water
- salt
- pepper
- Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
- Cook 1½ cups of uncooked polenta according to the package directions (will vary depending on type, mine took 5 minutes). Make sure to season well with salt and pepper.
- Once cooked spread the polenta into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish allow to cool. Place in refrigerator and allow to chill until ready to use.
- When it's time to serve, cut the polenta into 20 equal squares and gently remove from the pan.
- Coat a non stick skillet, griddle, or grill pan with cooking spray and sear each polenta square until the outside is golden brown and slightly crispy.
- Top each square with ½ oz of shredded beef ribs and top with some of the onion from the cooking liquid. Garnish with fresh pomegranate arils and parsley. Enjoy!
1 polenta cake = 1 point
1/2 oz cooked shredded beef short ribs = 1 point
I didn't use any additional cooking liquid on top so I personally wouldn't count a point for it.
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ c skim milk
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp whipped cream cheese
- Place the cauliflower florets into a large pot along with the garlic cloves and salt. Bring to a boil and cooked 10-15 minutes until the cauliflower is very tender.
- Drain cooked cauliflower and place the cauliflower and garlic cloves into a food processor. Add in milk, cream cheese, and butter. Blend until the puree is very smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve ¼ of the cauliflower topped with short ribs and a couple of spoonful's of cooking liquid. Garnish with fresh pomegranate arils and chopped parsley.
To Serve With Short Ribs:
1/4 of the Caulimash (2 SmartPoints)
Topped with 3 oz cooked short rib meat ( 8 SmartPoints)
Drizzle with a little bit of cooking liquid, as desired (1 SmartPoint)
Garnish with fresh pomegranate arils and parsley (0 SmartPoints)
= 11 WW SmartPoints
I am so excited you are making one of my recipes and I would love to see how it turns out! Make sure to share it on Instagram and tag me @rachelshealtyplate and use #rachelshealthyplate so I can see your creation!
