Slow Baked Boneless Beef Short Ribs
March 23rd, 2014 | 
Author: Sundays are meant to be lazy I think however sadly I rarely get a “do-nothing” Sunday or day for that matter. Working two full time jobs (my day job and TKW) leaves very little down time. Most of you know I’m a girl on the go-go-go who pretty much never sits still let alone takes time for herself. Maybe I’m afraid I’m going to miss out on something awesome life has to offer or perhaps I’m just so used to it that it’s just become part of my ‘norm’. If I had a dollar for how many times I heard “How do you do it? Just listening to what all you do makes me tired! Where do you get the energy??? Can I have some???” Honestly I’m not sure. Well maybe that’s not entirely true. Ever since I made a life choice years ago to live a healthier lifestyle that incorporated a better eating plan, exercise (trust me at one point in my life exercise was a 4-lettered word and punishment) and a more positive outlook that seemed to kick things off. Now I’ve always worked insane hours. Again this stems from growing up as poor as we did. Truth be told being that poor sucks, no one should go without even the little things in life but I’m not one to depend on others to help make my life better. If I want my life better then *I* have to make the change and *I* have to make it happen. My parents always told me “Anything worth doing is worth doing the very best you can” and I have made that my mantra in life.
Now sure I tire and have my days where I honestly don’t think I can take another step but I dig deep down and push through however if my body says “HEY DING DONG! YOU NEED A BREAK!” I’m going to listen. This is the only body I’ll ever have – well again, that’s not true as I have a bunch of fake parts already.. pins, bolts, rods holding bones together and my lovely pig patch in my tummy. LOL But you get the gist. So while I had intentions on getting 9 million things done this one Sunday my body just didn’t have it in it get it done. I needed rest. However I also knew I needed to make food for dinner and maybe some leftovers during week (though we all know leftovers are a rarity in my house due to my eating machine husband). Since this was going to be one of those rare days where I actually was going to take a nap while Mr. Fantabulous was at band practice I wanted something so simple that I could get done in 10 minutes and go rest.
Since Friday’s after work is when I hit up Costco (as it’s like 5 minutes from my work but a bajillion miles from my home) I found the most gorgeous boneless beef short ribs. Honestly they are the only place that has them, not even my local butcher does. Now I’ve made this with bone-in and while bone-in has a deeper flavor I find them a pain in the butt as I want all meat, not just bone. Plus they are the same price (which I still don’t quite understand). 5 pounds of boneless beef short ribs does not equal the same amount of meat in 5 pounds of bone-in beef short ribs. I actually debated this with a butcher once and we left it as I said he was wrong and he disagreed.
Am I wrong on this?
Even though I planned on napping I never nap real long. If I do it tends to wear me out worse and make me feel drained. Since I didn’t want to sleep all day (though I’m sure my body would have loved that) I did have stuff to do. Now if it were stuff Mr. Fantabulous could do he would but this was TKW stuff and since he’s not allowed to touch the pots, pans or anything in the kitchen I have to get it done. So I opted to go with a slow bake with these. Literally these were so simple they pretty much cooked themselves.
All I literally do was put them in a pan, cover them with some bbq sauce, cover with foil and slow bake. And off to sleepyville I went! Let me tell you what folks it was awesome! I had the most amazing dreams too and it’s funny as all I kept dreaming about was bbq and food. However I think those dreams were influenced by the fact that I had the most amazing beef and bbq sauce scents wafting throughout my house. Now I did have my alarm set however the smells from the oven woke up me. I knew dinner was close to being done as I could smell the ‘doneness’.
As I approached the kitchen the smells were just intoxicating! I removed the foil and let them bake another 30 minutes to get that deep char on top. Once they were done I pulled them out of the oven and plated them. Dear GOD they were GORGEOUS! I brushed them with some of the reserved bbq sauce and then with what was in the pan, I actually poured it into a fat separating container and let it sit for bit. Once it did, I poured out the good stuff into a pan and let the fat stuff stay behind. I brought that pan to a boil and thickened it up with some more bbq sauce and some cornstarch. No way was I letting those flavors go to waste!
By the time Mr. Fantabulous got home I had made a pot of perfect mashed potatoes to go with these, some rolls and a nice Caesar salad. As he walked in with his gear you could see him immediately perk up and start sniffing the air like dog. Cutest thing ever when he does that! Immediately came his smile and I swear he ran to bring in the rest of his gear! Dinner was awesome and I was rested. That truly was a fantastic Sunday and one that I think I need more of!
Rating
- 4 pounds boneless beef short ribs
- 1 tsp kosher sale
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 cups ketchup
- 2 Tbl liquid smoke
- 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup minced onion
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 cup Bacon BBQ Sauce
- 2 Tbl cornstarch
- 2 Tbl water
- Preheat the oven to 300F with a rack in the middle.
- In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, add the ketchup, liquid smoke, brown sugar, minced onion, garlic powder, bacon bbq sauce and mix until combined.
- Cook until thick and bubbly; stirring occasionally. ~10 minutes.
- Season the short ribs all over with salt and pepper
- Place in a 13x9" glass baking dish. This will be a tight squeeze.
- Pour about 1/2 cup over the short ribs.
- Using tongs, flip the ribs over and spoon another 1/2 cup of the sauce over top. Reserve the remaining BBQ sauce to spoon over the cooked ribs.
- Cover the pan with foil and roast for 2 1/2 hours.
- Remove the foil and gently flip the short ribs.
- Cook for 30 minutes more, until the meat is tender and browned.
- Transfer the short ribs to a serving platter.
- Baste the short ribs with some of the reserved BBQ sauce.
- At this point you can discard the cooking liquid or you can pour it into a fat strainer to allow it to separate. (This is what I did)
- Pour the juices into a medium sauce pan leaving the fat greasy part behind.
- Add in about 1/4 cup bbq sauce and bring to a boil.
- Make a slurry of the cornstarch and water and whisk into the liquid to thicken.
- Use this thicken sauce as a dipping sauce/gravy.
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Made this today, tweaked it a little as I had not all the ingredients to make the sauce, so i substituted a Sweet Thai Chili sauce I bought at Costco and mixed it with BBQ bottle i had. came out dry, wont waste my time, food or money on this recipe. Should have used my Instant pot instead, lesson learned. Tasted great with a kick of the Thai sauce and my extra seasoning I added to it.
Such a great recipe!!! The bbq sauce was soooo good! The ribs came out tender and yummy, didn’t use a 9X13, I only made half the recipe so I did them in my Dutch oven, yum! The kids gobbled it up and the hubby liked it a lot too, going to use this a lot and share with family and friends. Thanks for sharing your recipe😁
You are absolutely correct! Boneless if same price per pound as bone-in is definitely more meat for the buck 😋
I don’t think boneless short ribs are short ribs at all but cut from a chuck roast. 😁 Just saying.
Technically you’re right. Boneless short ribs don’t come from the rib of the cow but from the actual shoulder of it. Only those that have actual bone in are deemed true “short ribs”. Boneless short ribs are often called country style chuck short ribs. However it’s the prep that you pay for that allows them to label them as boneless beef short ribs.
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We just got done eating and I must say Thank you for the recipe. Along with the Rib we had yellow mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. And washed all of this down with iced peach tea. Make this recipe for your family and show them how to make this meal and you will have started a tradition. Happy in Pa.
Hi Steven!
Thank you so much! I’m so happy that you and your family loved this! Mmmm peach tea – love it! I agree, this is a great family tradition meal!
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Just bought 2 boneless short ribs that are a total of 1.3 lbs. Should I shorten the cook time as well as reducing the amount of ingredients?
Hi Linda!
Definitely reduce the rest of the ingredients by at least 1/2. The cooking time will be about the same as the meat will need to render until tender.
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I didn’t think my family would end up getting any of these, cause I just couldn’t stop eating them! This will definitely happen again. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Casey!
I’m so happy you loved these as much as I do!
Merry Christmas and Best Kitchen Wishes!
These were fantastic, but I live in California, and the price is enough to keep me from purchasing these. They were SUPER expensive, at
least for what we got. Here they’re 12.99/lb. Regular short ribs are 5.99/lb. Great recipe, but not on my budget. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Happy and Safe Holidays to you and yours.
I tried this as directed & the meat turned out extremely dry and tough. I made my variation of the sauce which shouldn’t have made it tough. I usually sear or braise the meat before adding liquid but this time I didn’t. I’m wondering if that would have made a difference. The sauce was very tasty but meat was tough. Any suggestions?
Hi John!
Hmmm… that’s a first. Boneless eef short ribs are high in fat to begin with so them drying out is really, really odd. The only thing that I know of that would make meat tough is either it not being covered tightly during the majority of the cooking thus causing the liquid to evaporate OR the oven temperature isn’t registering accurately. Searing the meat you can most certainly do but that wouldn’t have affected the outcome of the meat in this recipe. If anything it would have given the beef a deeper flavor. When you uncovered your short ribs. was there still a good bit of liquid/sauce in the pan/pot?
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Hi,
I covered with tin foil as tightly as one can. I guess I could have also put the lid on it( ceramic casserole baking dish). Liquid was 3/4 up the meat so plenty of juice. Even after taking off the foil putting it back in for 30 min.. still tough. I have extensive culinary experience with my background in the industry & I’ve cooked short ribs which is why I’m puzzled why it didn’t turn out. I just hate it when you put a Labor of love in cooking a dish & it’s a flop but I guess you don’t learn or relearn if you don’t try again right? I got the meat at the regular grocery store & there was hardly any marbeling on it.
I made this last week and was honestly amazed how great it turned out; while using regular BBQ sauce. I tend to go with pork for ribs but this turned out just as good or better than other recipes I’ve tried. Will definitely be trying this again with bacon flavored sauce, and with pork. Thanks!
Hi Rob!
I’m so happy you loved this! This is one of my favorites to serve (and eat!). Thank you so much!
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Can anyone tell me how to do the fat seperating without a fat separator? can I do it with a turkey baster maybe?
Easiest is let it cool and the fat will rise to the top. Another way is use a large spoon and skim the fat off of the top.
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Hi Lori!
Instead of the 3/4 cup of Bacon BBQ Sauce, can I use 3/4 cup of what I have on hand (KC Masterpiece Original)? I’m asking because, in addition to the Bacon BBQ sauce, your basting/rub ingredients include 2 cups of ketchup and I’m wondering if using the KC Masterpiece sauce would have a negative affect on the taste?
Instead of turkey, I’m going to prepare this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner and even though I’m a bacon fanatic, there are a couple of guest with health issues relating to pork. Of course, I will be sneaking a little bit of bacon fat into my mustard greens, but for their sakes, I don’t want to push it. So, let me know, thanks!
Hi Lizzie!
I’ve not tried it with the KC one. Yes but what I would do is omit the liquid smoke as I believe their original flavor has a smoke back end taste, right? You should be fine. Just mix together the sauce ingredients and taste it before you put the meat in. If anything you may need to add a teensy bit more sugar.
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Thank you so much. {You’re right, KC does have a hint of smokiness.) I can’t wait to get started. Again, thanks for the quick response. Have a great day!
You as well and you’re most welcome!
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My mouth is watering. Can’t wait to fix these ribs. The sauce sounds awesome.
Thank you. I’ll report back after I make these. Hopefully this week.
Jo
I absolutely love this recipe Jo! I’m sure you will too!
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simply amazing!!! my whife hates bbq sauce, but kids love it so I figured she could suffer through this one meal, but now we have made these ribs five times in the last two weeks, with a full seal of approval!!! the first time I was going to ask everyone what they thought, I looked up and all were devouring these ribs like it was their first meal in a week!!! thank you so much for the time you put into this, and making this father a great cook.
Hi Tim!
Woohoo! Congrats on being the Kitchen Rockstar with this recipe! That’s awesome! I’m so happy everyone loved it and you got to shine!
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I was quite puzzled how to cook these,until I found you. I got mine at Costco as well, going to try them today, thank you so much, I will provide feedback.😀
I like your story, I understand the pain thing… I have to have caregivers, I have one really awesome one right now and she can Cook! I could not live without her! Thank you for your story and recipe too.
What about the cornstarch??? Do I put that in? It has it in ingredients but doesn’t tell you when to put it in?
Mariah
It’s line item 16 when you make the slurry.
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Is #16 then used as a dipping sauce? (Ribs are on a platter at this point and we’ve added more of the bbq sauce to them already)
Gonna try these (I’m not the cook my hubby is and it’s his bday!) and I don’t want to mess this up! 😉
Thx!
Stacie
Hey Stacie – I added a #17 to say what it’s used for. It’s essentially a dipping sauce/gravy. It’s amazing on mashed potatoes! Happy Birthday to your hubby!
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I don’t each beef on the regular maybe every six months, I read the recipe and it appeared tasty. I prepared the beef for my honey , cooked meat according to recipe , omg I ate most of the beef ribs. I had to remember that I cooked it for him. Very delecious ………
Haha that’s awesome Wendi! Thank you so much! I’m like you; I don’t eat beef that often but there’s just something magical about this recipe!
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I’ve made this twice now and can’t seem to get the tenderness just right…at least I don’t think it is. Isn’t the meat supposed to be fork-tender, as in it will easily pull or shred apart with a fairly light touch of the fork? Mine turned out somewhat tender, but I still had to cut it with a fork (kinda like I would a waffle). Any suggestions?
Hi Dan,
Yes the meat should be fork tender but what lends to them being fall apart truly depends on how much marbling they have to start with. I buy mine either at Costco or my local butcher. I’ve noticed the ones at my butcher have a lesser fat marble thus I need to use a fork to ‘cut’ the beef versus the ones from Costco which pretty much fall part as the fork approaches. What you could do is, if the cuts you have, aren’t that marbled (not fatty but marbled) bake them another 15 minutes or so.
Let me know if that makes sense!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
This sounds great. Can you tell me how many people this recipe will serve?
Thanks, Barbara
Thank you so much Barbara!
It honestly depends on how big your short ribs are. 4 pounds for me is about 6-7 big ribs. Mr. Fantabulous can eat a whole one himself where me I can do about half. I would say it would feed 4-5 easily with enough for a little leftover.
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I made this yesterday. The only thing I did differently was I used an apple bourbon BBQ sauce because I didn’t have time to make the bacon sauce. Wow! Very tender and tasty. Will definitely make again.
Thank you so much Deborah! Ohhhh that apple bourbon BBQ sauce sounds awesome! Did you make that too? If you have leftovers of the ribs, shred some and put it on a pizza with some of your bbq sauce, some caramelized shallots and sharp cheddar.. OMG it’s to die for!
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Can I roast in a Dutch oven as opposed to a glass pan with tin foil?
Hi Nicole,
Yes I’ve done it in a dutch oven. If you have a cover for it, you can use that in lieu of the in foil.
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I’m a little upset. I followed this recipe exactly only to open up my foil and find my ribs burned 🙁
I use boneless “short ribs” all the time. They are not the same cut as a true bone-in short rib and are cheaper. That’s why the price confusion with your butcher. He should have just told you “this is a cheaper cut of meat!” (Though even the cuts that used to be ground for hamburgers are now sought after… and not cheap.) But as I said… I use them all the time!
Interesting. I only buy the boneless because to me it’s stupid to pay so much money for almost 2″ of bone with barely any meat. But again true meat flavor comes from the bone. It just would cost me an arm and a leg 😉
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You gals are a Crack up! I’m gonna check in just to get a chuckle from time to time! Trying the recipe tonight… cross them fingers! Only 1.50 lb tho. Going w same cooking time.
Hi Janet!
Yeah the weight of the meat doesn’t impact the time in which you cook them. I just made these the other day because they are one of my favorite meals!
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Oops, got my names mixed up. Thanks TKW.
Tee hee it’s okay 🙂 And it’s Lori for the record 🙂
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Hi Jen!
Thanks for a great recipe. I used the Bacon BBQ sauce exclusively instead of mixing it into what seems to just be another less complex BBQ sauce. Any reason why you chose not too? In fact the BBBQ sauce is so good I am going to try using it for everything, including making a perfume essence as my boys were all over the Kitchen and wouldn’t leave while it was being made – I might chop up the bacon a bit finer though. I also used a real smoky bacon and left out the liquid smoke though I guess you can’t be too “smokey”. In any case my youngest suggested I only make this three times a week or he might get bored of it. Cheers. All the best, Drew
Hey Drew 🙂
Honestly there is no rhyme or reason as to why I used this sauce over the other. Not everyone is a bacon fan (I know, right! What’s wrong with “those” people??? lol) so I do my best to give a variety. I, too, have use the BBQ bacon sauce this this recipe and loved it. HAHAHA OMG perfume essence! I LOVE it!!!
Thanks again for making my day!
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My store only had boneless pork ribs. Will this recipe work with pork?
Hi Jen!
Yes, this works beautifully! Same amount of cooking time as well.
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Hi ! I only made a pound of meat I reduced all of the ingredient sizes but do I keep the same time?
Hi Shante,
Yes you keep the same time.
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Can you make these in the crockpot?
Hi Michelle!
Yes you can. Make the sauce as-is. For the beef, let them come to room temperature then season with salt and pepper. Put them in a heated skillet to pan sear on all sides (about 2-4 minutes per side). Place in the crock pot, pour the sauce over top, and then cook on low for 7-8 hours or until the meat is fork tender.
To thicken up the sauce, remove the meat (carefully) and then strain following steps 14-16.
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If I am buying a 2 lbs of boneless ribs, what should I shorten the cooking time to? thanks is advance!!
Tiffany,
You won’t shorten the time – you’ll still be slow cooking the meat regardless of how much their is. What you will need to do is cut the other ingredients in half since you’re using half the amount of meat. If you don’t you’ll end up with a boatload of sauce.
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Perfect. Thank you so much for your response!!
You are most welcome!
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Sounds really good. Thank you. I do mix my food up and in most cases the food is better.
Thank you so much Liz! Yeah I’m a mixer through and through. And I agree, it tastes better!
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I just made the Bacon BBQ sauce and it is simmering. I plan to make the ribs with the sauce, but I see that I only use a portion of the Bacon BBQ sauce and end up making ANOTHER sauce to use on the ribs.
Can I just use the Bacon BBQ sauce on the ribs and call it good???
(I’m not trying to be rude. I don’t understand the need for the new sauce.)
Hi! Yes you can use just the bacon BBQ sauce. I liked both as it adds another level of flavor. Since the bacon BBQ sauce doesn’t have liquid smoke in it the other BBQ sauce adds that depth of flavor to it.
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Sooo, I went to BJ’s since we do not have a Costco and I asked the butcher for boneless beef short ribs. He handed me a package and I headed to the check out. When I got home I noticed what I think are bones. The label on the package reads “Beef Chuck Short Ribs”. Will I need to adjust the cooking times or temp due to the presence of bones? Thanks for your advice!
Hi Jilly,
You can keep the temp the same, same with the cooking time. The bones actually give it a more richer flavor. If you want, check the beef at the 2 hours mark. The meat should be tender but not “tender enough”. You want this meat to just melt in your mouth when you eat it. I’ve made it bone-in and like I said, about the 2 hour mark I tend to uncover it. What you will have to watch out then is you may have to baste it a few times or flip it so the meat doesn’t dry out while it’s finishing up in the oven.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Omg! Sooooo delicious! Followed the recipe, other than the bones in my ribs and I couldn’t find bacon BBQ sauce so I used regular. I knew they were good, but didn’t realize just how good until I looked at my husband who had a mouth full of food and a rib dangling from his hands as he uttered “I knew I couldn’t eat another rib but I just can’t stop”! And I got the ultimate seal of approval…a sticky kiss! Thanks for another awesome dinner!
Jilly,
The Bacon BBQ sauce (when you look online here) links to the recipe on my site. Trust me when I say this.. the Bacon BBQ Sauce is LIFE CHANGING! Seriously, it’s EPIC! http://www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2013/06/08/bacon-bbq-sauce/ You can thank me now for it 🙂
I LOOOOOOOOOOVE your story! The sticky kiss is the best compliment ever! Love it!
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Trying these ribs for the first time since I’ve been married, 60 years. Our son, Mike does all the bar b Q and he does a fantastic job. Hope mine are half as good.
Wish me luck.