Crockpot Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

4.92 from 12 votes

Crockpot Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

This Crockpot red wine braised short ribs recipe is the ultimate cold weather comfort food! It has fall-off-the-bone tender ribs with a deep, rich, and flavorful red wine sauce.

Prep Time20

Cook Time8 20

Total Time8 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Crockpot braised short ribs, red wine braised short ribs

Servings:

Author: Natasha Bull

Ingredients

3.5-4 pounds beef short ribs (bone-in)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large carrot peeled & chopped finely
1 medium onion chopped
6 cloves garlic minced
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bottle dry red wine
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt see note
Pepper to taste
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions

Season the short ribs with salt & pepper.
Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat, and once the pan is hot, sear half the short ribs for about 3-4 minutes/side or until nicely browned. Transfer to a plate and then repeat for the second batch. The ribs will likely release excess fat, and if they do, spoon some of the fat out, leaving about 1-2 tablespoons in the skillet.
Add the carrots and onions to the skillet and sauté for 6-8 minutes or until they start to lightly brown.
Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook for about a minute, then transfer the skillet mixture to your slow cooker.
Add the red wine, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, smoked paprika, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and thyme to the Crockpot. Give it a stir. Add the short ribs in as even of a layer as possible (some will likely stick out and that's ok). Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or 5-6 hours on high.
Once the ribs are done, skim the fat off the surface (I just use a spoon to do this... don't worry about getting it all). Mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water until you've got a smooth mixture, then stir it into the Crockpot. Turn the heat to high, cover it again, and let it cook for about 5-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened up a bit. Add extra salt & pepper if needed.

Notes

If you're not using sea salt or kosher salt, you may want to start with 1/2 teaspoon and add more once you've tasted it. This recipe needs enough salt to bring out the flavors, so definitely don't under-salt this one.
I prefer cooking these on low for the best results, but high works if you're in a time crunch.
Serves 6+ depending on how much people eat.
This recipe has been tweaked from its original version that was published in 2017. If you love that version, you can still access it here.

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