Easy Oven Baked Short Ribs in Red Wine Sauce

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Easy Oven Baked Short Ribs in Red Wine Sauce are the answer to your dinner party dreams. Bone-in beef short ribs are full of flavor, classic comfort food, and when cooked low and slow, so tender the meat falls off the bone.

Braised in a decadent and flavorful red wine sauce, these slow cooking beef ribs are the ideal make-ahead main dish for an extraordinary holiday meal, a special occasion, or a fabulous dinner party.

Oven baked short ribs on a bed of mashed potatoes.

Fear not; although this oven-baked short rib recipe looks a little complicated, with more prep time than most of my recipes, like my Boneless Country Style Pork Ribs, it is an easy recipe with simple ingredients. It takes a little time to brown the meat, but after that, everything comes together quickly, and your oven does all the heavy lifting.

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Reasons to love this recipe:
Ingredients notes and substitutions:
Here’s how to cook beef short ribs in the oven:
Serving suggestions:
Recipe variations:
How to store and reheat leftovers:
Make ahead short ribs:
How many short ribs per serving?
Frequently asked questions:
Sharon’s Expert Tips:
More dinner party recipes:
📋 Recipe:
Oven Baked Short Ribs with Red Wine Sauce Recipe

Reasons to love this recipe:

This oven baked short ribs recipe can be made ahead of time and reheated. The beef back ribs are even more flavorful the next day, and your entire family will love them!
Cooked low and slow in a Dutch oven, braised beef ribs have a rich, meaty, succulent flavor that has no equal. Combined with these delicious Air Fryer Green Beans, it’s the perfect meal.
The braising liquid or sauce used in the recipe can be customized according to your preferences. Whether you prefer my red wine reduction, tangy barbecue sauce, Asian-inspired glaze, or another variation, there are endless options to explore.

Ingredients notes and substitutions:

Ingredients for Oven Baked Short Ribs include a bunch of thyme, short ribs, and a bottle of red wine.

Beef short ribs – the star of this show, are full of big beefy flavor, and after cooking low and slow, they are fall off the bone tender. Bone-in short ribs have more taste than boneless. They are also ideal for smoking and usually cooked as a plate or rack, as in my recipe for Smoked Beef Short Ribs.
Kosher salt and ground black pepper – are used as seasonings and enhance all flavors and bring them together in one cohesive dish.
Butter – is that magic ingredient that adds rich buttery flavor and browns the meat. (not pictured)
Onion and garlic – these aromatic alliums add their distinctive flavor profile to the rich wine sauce.
Carrots – besides being full of beta carotene, add a sweet, woodsy flavor to the red wine sauce.
Tomato paste – is used to enrich the flavor of the wine sauce. Since you only need a small amount, consider purchasing it in a tube, where you can squeeze out what you need.
Thyme – adds a lovely lemony, earthy component to this dish. When used as a garnish, the leaves add a beautiful green pop of color.
Red wine – the big flavors, sweetness, and acidity in red wine complement all other flavors in this dish and make a richly flavored and delicious red wine sauce.
Beef stock – adds a rich beefy deliciousness to the cooking liquid and keeps the meat moist and succulent while cooking. Beef broth can be substituted.

Complete measurements for all ingredients can be found in the recipe card below.

Here’s how to cook beef short ribs in the oven:

Preheat your oven to 300°F.
Pat the ribs dry with a paper towel and liberally season with salt and pepper on all sides.

Beef short ribs topped with salt and pepper.

Add the butter to a large Dutch oven over medium heat.
Add the ribs a few at a time when the butter is melted, but do not crowd them. Brown on all sides, and repeat as needed.

Remove the beef from the pan and set it aside.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the onion and carrots to the pan. Stir and cook for about ten minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Add the garlic, tomato paste, and thyme and cook for an additional 30 seconds.

Carrots, onions, thyme and tomato paste cooking in a pan.

Increase the heat to medium-high and add the red wine. Cook for about ten minutes or until the wine is reduced by half. Then, add the beef stock.

Add the ribs back to the pan and bring the liquid to a simmer.
Cover the pan and bake in the oven for two to two and a half hours. Or, until the meat is very tender and about to fall off the bone. (Start checking at 2 hours.)

Beef short ribs cooking in a red wine sauce.

When the ribs are done, remove them from the pan and cover to keep warm. Fish out, and discard the sprigs of thyme. Place the pan back on the stove over medium-high heat and cook the sauce for ten or so minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened slightly.
Add the ribs back to the sauce to heat them, and serve. Optional: garnish with a few sprigs of thyme before serving.

Two oven baked short ribs on a plate of mashed potatoes with gravy.

Serving suggestions:

My favorite way to serve these oven baked short ribs is over my Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes. But they would also be delicious over Easy Rustic Mashed Potatoes or Pancetta and Rosemary Mashed Potatoes.

You could also serve them over Parmesan Cheese Grits or Creamy Cheesy Polenta. Other ideas include rice or buttered egg noodles.

This is a rich dish, so I like to keep my sides simple. Here are some suggestions:

My Classic House Salad, Cucumber and Tomato Salad, or Spinach Salad would help balance the richness of the oven baked short ribs.

A slice of my Texas Toast Garlic Bread, Irish Soda Bread, or Southern Cornbread would be perfect for mopping up the delicious red wine sauce.

Peanut Butter Mousse or creamy Vanilla Panna Cotta topped with Strawberries are light and elegant dessert options.

Recipe variations:

Oven baked short ribs are a versatile dish you can customize with various recipe variations to suit your taste preferences.

Make BBQ beef ribs by adding a dry rub and your favorite BBQ sauce or homemade BBQ sauce before baking to create a smoky and tangy flavor.

Slow bake the short ribs in apple cider with fresh herbs and sweet caramelized onions.

Bake the short ribs in white wine with fresh herbs and top it with a creamy French-inspired mushroom sauce made using herbs, Dijon mustard, and parmesan cheese.

How to store and reheat leftovers:

This is one of those dishes that is even better the next day. Store leftovers, including the cooking liquid, in an airtight container and keep them in the refrigerator for up to three days. You can also freeze leftovers in an airtight container for up to three months.

To reheat, for the best results, preheat your oven temperature to 250°F This lower temperature will help prevent the meat from drying out. Place the meat and cooking liquid in an ovenproof dish or a roasting pan lined with foil.

Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil to trap moisture and prevent the meat from drying out. Heat for approximately 20-30 minutes or until they are warmed through. Cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the ribs.

Make ahead short ribs:

Follow the recipe as written. Let the ribs, vegetables, and sauce cool, and refrigerate, covering them in the pot for up to two days. Before serving, scrape off any solidified fat that may have risen to the surface.

Bring the sauce and short ribs to a boil over high heat. Then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 10-15 minutes until thoroughly heated.

How many short ribs per serving?

This recipe for beef ribs in the oven is very rich, and typically, as long as the ribs are meaty and at least two to three inches thick, one rib is about what most folks, except those with very hearty appetites, will eat.

That said, if you are buying a package of ribs, several will often not be as meaty as others. The batch pictured in this post included two that, after cooking, cooked down to just bones with no meat to speak of.

If you are hosting a dinner party or making this recipe for a special occasion, I would purchase at least a few extras to be safe.

Frequently asked questions:

What are short ribs?

If you aren’t familiar with this cut of beef, they are the beef equivalent of pork spare ribs. Sometimes called chuck roast short ribs, they are shorter, but these meaty ribs have much more meat than their counterparts, pork ribs or baby back ribs.

What’s the best way to cook beef ribs in the oven?

Low and slow is the name of this game! Braising is a form of moist-heat cooking that breaks down connective tissues and tenderizes tough cuts of meat, like beef short ribs, while it cooks.

You can braise the ribs in the oven, on the stove, or in a crockpot or slow cooker. I prefer to cook mine in the oven because they don’t need to be watched as carefully, and you only have one pan to wash.

What’s the best wine for the sauce?

You shouldn’t use any wine in cooking that you wouldn’t drink, and that also goes for the wine you use in this recipe. Easy Red Wine Braised Beef Short Ribs calls for dry red wine and, in general, that includes Cabernet Sauvignons, Merlots, Shiraz, Pinot Noir, and Red Zinfandel.

That said, you do not have to use an expensive wine in this recipe.

Sharon’s Expert Tips:

When purchasing short ribs, they should be at least two to three inches thick. They should also be well-marbled and have plenty of meat on the bones. They will shrink when cooked. If you buy the smaller, thinner ribs without much meat, you will only have bones left after cooking.
For a smooth gravy-like sauce, pour it through a strainer to remove any bits of veggies. To thicken it, make a slurry by combining one tablespoon of cornstarch with one-half cup of water. Add this slurry to the sauce and let it cook until it thickens. Then add the meat back in and let them heat up before serving.
If there is any accumulated fat on the surface, use a spoon to skim it off before serving.
If you would like to make this recipe in a crockpot or slow cooker, follow the steps up to the point when all ingredients have been added to the pot. Transfer everything to your crockpot or slow cooker. Cook for eight hours on the low setting.