Braised Short Ribs

Mike_M

Member
I am trying to find a good braised short rib recipe for the dutch oven. One to braise them then cook them in the oven in the cast iron. I found several on the internet, but they all had tomato paste and a bottle of wine. I read on this site not to use acidic foods, specifically tomatos or wine, in cast iron as it can damage the seasoning and allow the metal to leech out. So anybody have a good recipe?
 
Mike_M,

If you ever decide to invest in an enameled DO, you will be able use acidic foods. Additional cost I know, but it does open up more possibilities.
 
Mike_M,

If you ever decide to invest in an enameled DO, you will be able use acidic foods. Additional cost I know, but it does open up more possibilities.

Thanks for the suggestion, that is a good point. Are there good old ones to keep an eye out for that are better than what you can get new today? I liked the idea of cooking in old original cast iron though. I just never paid much attention to enamled cast iron before.
 
Thanks for the suggestion, that is a good point. Are there good old ones to keep an eye out for that are better than what you can get new today? I liked the idea of cooking in old original cast iron though. I just never paid much attention to enamled cast iron before.
You can always keep an eye out for an older Le Cheque oops I mean Le Creuset lol. Most older enameled pieces have a few nicks in the enamel. Look for Le Creuset, Descoware, DRU Holland, Copco and Cousances.

My favorite are Copco and Descoware.

The new Lodge are priced well and cook fine. Le Creuset can cost you your check if new or used.
 
Thanks will check them out.

Will beer also compromise the seasoning if I use that in place of the wine?
 
I recently bought, at auction, 3 Le Creuset skillets (7 1/2" to 12" dia.) for $164 plus fees. I thought that was reasonable. They appear to be never used and in excellent shape. Beautiful yellow sunburst. Then earlier, I got a 12" cream-colored skillet and a matching square skillet/griddle and a smaller green 7" skillet for $27.00 You gotta LOVE those auctions!
 
Not likely. The acidity of wine, vinegar, tomatoes, etc. is the concern.

Ok thanks.

---------- Post added at 05:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:55 PM ----------

You can always keep an eye out for an older Le Cheque oops I mean Le Creuset lol. Most older enameled pieces have a few nicks in the enamel. Look for Le Creuset, Descoware, DRU Holland, Copco and Cousances.

My favorite are Copco and Descoware.

The new Lodge are priced well and cook fine. Le Creuset can cost you your check if new or used.

I was looking at the staub ones, they seem good as well but all expensive

---------- Post added at 05:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:57 PM ----------

Well, I went to the store and priced the short ribs already cut to about 2". It was about $8 per pound which is about 4 little ribs. Was more than I was expecting them to be.
 
I was looking at the staub ones, they seem good as well but all expensive

Staub and Le Creuset are expensive. If you're going to use them often, I could see spending the money. If not, Lodge or a lower priced DO would be just fine.
 
I got a Le Creuset 9 1/2 quart oval dutch oven at eBay at half the going rate. Apparently there's some sort of outlet store that is selling seconds with color spotting inside and little cosmetic scratches that is selling them at a discount. Some people try to sell them at full price, but more ethical people photograph the problems carefully and point them out. That makes a lot of people pass over them, so they get listed over and over. I contacted the seller and made a very low offer and they came way down from their buy it now price. It's worth making an offer even if they don't have make an offer on the listing.
 
Here's an old post from 2016:
http://www.castironcollector.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4202

Some discussion about replacing the wine with more beef broth. Doug D. weighed in.

Recipe links to "The Pioneer Woman," who used an enameled Dutch oven (link has pictures).

I realize I'm replying to a post from last February, but the quoted link to a thread from 2016, that 2016 thread was my thread.

Yes, though I got away with using the wine that time, in general I agree with what Doug said and have stopped using acidic foods (tomato, wine) in my regular cast iron, particularly for long cooks, in order to not damage the seasoning.

I've yet to invest in quality ECI (Le Creuset, Staub, vintage Descoware) and haven't been able to bring myself to buy Chinese ECI (Tramontina) so instead, when I cook dishes like that these days, I use multiclad stainless steel and save my CI for another day.

Have a good one.
 
I have a Cooks Essentials DO, enameled , and it works just as good as a "good"one. I paid 4 bucks at GW.
 
I am trying to find a good braised short rib recipe for the dutch oven. One to braise them then cook them in the oven in the cast iron. I found several on the internet, but they all had tomato paste and a bottle of wine. I read on this site not to use acidic foods, specifically tomatos or wine, in cast iron as it can damage the seasoning and allow the metal to leech out. So anybody have a good recipe?
I find the seasoning on modern lodge pieces rather fragile. I have had the inside of my camp dutch oven rust through the seasoning he first time I used it....to make sweet potatoes on charcoal. So Now I strip them and use my own seasoning. This is pretty bullet proof. I can simmer a tomato rich curry in the 12" with no issue. I made a seafood scampi that was heavy on the lemon juice and had no problems. It got a splash of sherry right at the end. Quite on the other hand I simmered some strait lemon juice in a smaller skillet and it stripped it. And that was my best seasoning method. So will not repeat.

My mother is a very fine cook and was a food writer ("ladies editor")
in the early 60's. She saved her newspaper columns and made a sort of family cookbook. My sister has it now. I remember part of her recipe for ribs (and ox tails). The meat is cooked in a pressure cooker. This is very fast and has the meat falling off the bone in short order. Then it is transferred to a pan and simmered briefly in the sauce and served. So the time the time the CI is exposed to the simmering sauce is very short and a decent seasoning should take it. And it's faster to make than braising. Alternatively the meat can be braised in CI and the sauce added at the end with the wine being added at the end of that.

Much as I like my CI I also use stainless (like the pressure cooker) and terra cotta. I think it wise to chose the best weapon for the battle. The most acidic thing I make is a sort of cranberry sauce stuff and I ship it cross country uncanned so I pump up the acidity with ascorbic acid to preserve it. Stainless only. Roast chicken and bread go in the terra cotta although I want to try some bread in the dutch oven.
 
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