BBQ Beef Short Ribs in Instant Pot over Spaghetti Squash

A few years ago, on Amazon Prime Day, in a moment of weakness, I purchased the mysterious Instant Pot that everyone has been raving about. I unboxed it about a month later and did the boiling water test. And that it just set there for a while. And all I make in there is boring things like oatmeal and eggs and chickpeas. And while I do like it, it, for me, it has been a slow sloooooow learning curve. Saw a version of this recipe and decided to try it. It was a fast weeknight dinner and a huge hit so I figured I would share. The original recipe had both the spaghetti squash and the meat cooking in the IP but I roasted the squash in my Breville while the meat cooked.

Ingredients
2 shallots chopped
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 cup BBQ sauce
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup water
2 pounds of boneless beef short ribs
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 spaghetti squash
Cooking Oil (I use grape seed oil)


Spaghetti Squash
Wash/Dry Piece a few small holes
Microwave for 2 minutes to soften
Cut in half and scoop out seeds
Roast face down for about 1/2 hour at 420, flip over face up and roast another 10-20 minutes till soft.
        *I used my Breville for this but it would be just fine in a regular oven
Scoop out the spaghetti like flash, add seasoning and keep warm.

Beef Short Ribs

Brown cut up short ribs about 2 minutes per side. I used a regular pan not IP for this.
But you can also use the IP saute feature. When cooked, add to IP. You may want to do this in batches to not crowd the meat.

Sauté 2 chopped shallots and 2 garlic cloves in a little oil. Added to IP.

Added 1 cup BBQ sauce, 1/4 cup soy sauce, quarter cup of water to IP. Used Meat/Stew setting for 30 mins. I think next time I would go 5 minutes longer. Use Natural Release (aka wait till you can open the pot). This came out quite saucy. If you would like, you can simmer it a bit to thicken the sauce. I did this in another pot on the stovetop (bc IP newbie). Taste the sauce, you may want to add a bit of sugar to it at this point if you like the sauce a bit sweeter.

Serve over the cooked warm spaghetti squash. As you may be able to see in my photo, I also added a bit of already cooked chickpeas and quinoa. Because you know, us working moms want to spread that delicious meal into 2 days.

Voila. Drop me a note and let me know how you like it.

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Last weekend, I made braised beef short ribs for the first time ever and their were absolutely delicious and pretty easy to prepare. All you need is about a 1/2 hour of prep time and a few more hours for braising in the oven. I served them over potato/parsnip puree and roasted green beans.  This yielded 2 days worth of dinner, one lunch of leftovers and some delicious bones for the dog.

I quizzed my cooking group on facebook for recommendations and put this together based one of the recipes with a bit of improve on my part.

Ingredients:

about 3 pounds of beef short ribs (mine were bone in)

1 bottle of red wine (I used cabarnet savignon)

3 shallots chopped (ok to substitute w onion)

3 leek bulbs white and light green roughly chopped

2 carrots cut into rounds

2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed

6 oz can of tomato paste

2 cups of beef stock (ok to substitute w more wine, water or stock)

a few spigs of thyme

2 bay leaves

Flour for dredging meat (I used whole wheat)

Neutral oil (I used grape seed)

Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 325.

In the meantime, in a heavy duty dutch oven, heat up a bit of oil. In the meantime, dredge short ribs in flour. When the oil is preheated, brown the short ribs on both sides, about 3 minutes a side. You may need to do this in batches, DO NOT CROWD or you will not get a proper browning.

Remove short ribs from dutch oven. Add a bit more oil if needed. 

Add shallots and leeks. Allow to brown a few minutes while scraping up meat bits from the dutch oven. 

Add carrots, bay leaves, thyme, garlic. Deglaze with red wine. Add the ribs back in. Pour stock or other additional liquid you are using. Cover well and place in oven.

Cook in the oven for about 1 hours. Add tomato paste and mix well. Cook additional 30 minutes to an hour for a total baking time for 1.5 to 2 hours. 

Remove from oven. Remove meat and use immersion blender to puree the sauce. Simmer on the stove top at a low flame to reduce a bit. Taste for salt.

Add meat back in. 

Serve over a carb of choice like potato pure or polenta. 

Enjoy. 

Pan to Oven Filet Mignon

This recipe results in a perfect steak! Simple, delicious and few ingredients. Just the way I like it.

Searing the steak first gives it a nice crust on the outside as well as seal in all the juices. Baking it afterwards results in a steak that is cooked through just the way you like it , for me, that would be medium with a nice pink center.

Ingredients:

1 filet mignon steak per person, mine were about 5 ounces each and about 1 inch thick

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

Salt and Pepper to Taste.

Remove the steaks from the fridge about 1/2 to 1 hour prior to cooking to allow them to come to room temperature. 

Season with salt and pepper on both sides.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat butter in an oven proof skillet till hot. Add steaks and cook 2 minutes, flip over and cook another 2 minutes. Do not disturb while cooking to allow crust to form.

When your oven is preheated, place skillet with steaks into the oven. Cook for about 10 minutes for medium. Internal temperature should be approximately 150 F.

Cooking time will vary based on the size and thickness of your fillet as well as your cooking preference.

Rough guidelines for cooking time:

Rare 6 minutes 130-140F

Medium Rare 8 minutes 140-150F

Medium 8-10 minutes 150-160F

You can keep the steaks warm by covering with foil. They will continue to cook a bit after removing from oven.

I served these with roasted potatoes and sauteed kale for a delicious meal the whole family enjoyed.

Pan to Oven Filet Mignon with Roasted Potatoes and Pan Sauteed Kale

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Beef short ribs are not in my regular rotation, this was my first time making them ever but the results were delicious. I used Anne Burrell's recipe (link below) which I adapted to fit my preferences (I loathe celery) and what I like more (leeks) as well as ingredients I had on hand. 

This recipe is fairly simple with the work front loaded and the rest of the time spent just smelling the delicious smell.

Ingredients: 

4 bone in beef short ribs (~2.5 pounds)
2 tablespoons of oil ( I used grape seed)
2 leeks, roughly chopped
3 shallots, roughly chopped
2 carrots, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves
1 cup of tomato paste
1 can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
2 bay leaves
2 cups of water
1 1/2 cup of red wine
Salt to taste

Directions:

Season each rib with salt. In a dutch oven/heavy cast iron pot, preheat oil on medium heat. Add salted beef short ribs. Do not crowd. If you have more then 4, you may need to do this in batches.
Brown about 3 minutes per side. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

While the oven is preheating and the short ribs are browning, puree all vegetables and garlic until they form a coarse paste. Do not overblend. Season with salt (and pepper if using-- I omit pepper, just not a fan).

Remove short ribs once browned. Drain the oil, add fresh oil and pureed veggie mixture. Cook till brown, about 7 minutes. Add tomato paste and tomatoes and cook  another 5 minutes. Add wine, cook about 5-8 minutes till mixture is reduced by half. 

Return short ribs to pan, placing on top of sauce. Add enough water to cover. Add thyme and bay leaves. Cover and cook for about 1 1/2 hours. Flip ribs to the other side. Cook another hour while covered. If the sauce is getting too thick, feel free to add more water. Remove cover and cook uncovered another 20-30 minutes to allow meat to brown. Meat should be very tender.

Serve over mashed potatoes or polenta with the sauce.

P.S--next time I will be making more of these to allow for left overs. 

adapted from Anne Burrell's Braised Beef Short Ribs Recipe

Rainbow Bell Peppers Stuffed with Quinoa and Ground Beef

These stuffed peppers are a delicious dinner option that I don't make nearly enough. You can pretty much vary the filling here to meet your dietary preferences or the leftovers grain you have on hand.

You can make them vegetarian by omitting the ground meat, and you can add grain of choice, I have tried these with rice or quinoa and both were great. Both pictures below, proportion are similar and you can eat the leftover stuffing without the pepper for lunch the next day.

Ingredients

2 cups of quinoa OR  rice cooked per package direction

1 pound of ground beef (I use lean grass fed beef), you can use another ground meat of choice or keep vegetarian

2 finely shopped shallots

1 bulb of leek, washed and finely chopped

salt to taste

seasoning to taste (I like to use Everything Rub from Fresh Direct which contains garlic, onion, chili powder and paprika)

1 can of diced tomatoes drained (if using)--i used these with rice but not with quinoa

1 tablespoon of oil ( I use grape seed)

4 bell peppers ( for the quinoa recipe I only had 3) with seeds removed and top cut off neatly to keep intact

Directions 

In a large skillet, heat oil. Add shallots and leeks and cook for about 5-7 minutes on medium flame until they begin to soften.

Add ground meat of choice. Cook breaking up with spatula until cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Add rice or quinoa, salt and seasoning. Add tomatoes if using. Allow to come to warm temperature.

In a small or medium pot, add a few inches of water. Bring to boil.

Fill peppers with filling. Top with pepper top. Add very carefully to pot with boiling water. Cover and cook on a small flame about 15-20 minutes until peppers are soft. 

Remove carefully and serve in bowls

Enjoy! 

Stuffed peppers with quinoa, ground beef, shallots and leeks

Stuffed peppers with rice, ground beef and diced tomatoes

Skirt Steak with Roasted Potatoes and Sautéed String Beans

I won't lie, this one is a collaboration with hubby as he is the steak master. Roasted potatoes and string beans are by yours truly.

Skirt steak (about 4 ounces per person)

For Steak Marinade:
2 tbsp of soy sauce (we use low sodium)
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp brown sugar
Squeeze of fresh lemon
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine above ingredients in a bowl, mix well. Wash and dry steak. Marinade for a few hours, or even better, overnight. Sometimes, we even marinade it for 2 nights, this results in amazing steak.

Spray a broiler pan with cooking spray. Broil on high but FAR from flame 4 minutes per side. More up closer to flame and broil another 1-2 minutes per side, depending on thickness of steak and how you like your steak. This cooking time results in medium/medium well steak depending on steak thickness. You can play with the time depending on your preference.

Last night, we had this steak with a side of roasted red potatoes and string beans. I often serve this over salad as well. In fact, will be making a kale salad with skirt steak over it tonight as I have some leftover steak and a bunch of kale.

Roasted Potatoes

4-6 red potatoes unpeeled but washed and blemishes removed cut into ½ inch pieces
2 tablespoons of oil (I used black truffle oil as I had it on hand but any oil will do)
Salt to taste

Preheat oven with baking dish in it on highest possible temperature. Mine is 450. Once preheated, reduce temperature to 425. Carefull add your potatoes. Roast about ½ hour turning occassionally.

String Beans
1/2 pound of string beans or french beans
1 tbsp oil (I use grape)
Salt/ pepper to taste

Wash and spin dry string beans, remove tails on both sides.
Preheat oil for about 2 minutes. When nice and hot, add your string beans. Cook about 15 minutes total, flipping over occasionally. We like them w a bit seared. Add salt and pepper to taste.

If you are interested in the salad over steak, I have a variation of that here

http://www.saladgirlnat.com/2012/10/skirt-steak-mango-salad-over-arugula.html

Beef Shank Stew with Shallots and White Beans Served with a Side of Mashed Potatoes w Roasted Garlic and Kale

Beef Stew is a great dinner for colder days and makes for excellent leftovers. 


INGREDIENTS for STEW:

4 Beef Shanks
1 cup of broth (I use organic chicken broth which is low sodium)
1 cup of red wine
4 shallots
1-2 Carrots if you like
1-2 cans of white beans
A few tablespoons of flour for dredging (I use whole wheat)
2-3 tbsp of oil (I use grape)
Herbs to taste (I use Herbs De Provence)
Salt and pepper to taste

1.  Wash and pat dry your beef. Depending on the size of the beef shanks, you may want to cut them up.
2. Dredge beef in flour on both sides. I like to do this on a large plate.
3. Heat up about half your oil in a pot, I use a cast iron by Le Creuset which I love.  Brown the shanks on both sides till brownish, you may have to do this 2 times if your beef does not fit. DO NOT CROWD or it may not brown properly.
4. While the beef is browning, peel and chop shallots. Peel and cut carrots. I like to cut the carrots in relatively large pieces so that my daughter who hates carrots can easily pick them up. Keep carrots and shallots separate in bowls.
5. Remove beef, wipe the oil residue from your pot. 
6. Add about half the broth and half the wine.
7. Saute shallots about 5 minutes, add the carrots and saute a few more minutes. Add the beef, remaining wine and broth. 
8. Season with herbs of your choice, I use Herb the Provence (a mix of dry thyme, rosemary, lavender). Add salt and pepper to taste.
9. Cover and cook on a low flame for about 2 hours. If you see there is still too much broth, uncover and increase flame a bit.
10. NOTE if you are using white beans, you will add them towards the end, when the beef needs to cook for another 30 minutes or so. You will need to drain them and rinse them, add and stir in. They get nice and soft and taste awesome ( I personally prefer them to the beef).

MASHED POTATOES w ROASTED GARLIC

 6 potatoes (small ones that are clean are best so you can leave the skin on)
4-6 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup milk (I use 1%)
Butter to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking spray (I use Spectrum Canola Oil)

Wash and clean potatoes well. If they are relatively unblemished, leave the skin on otherwise peel

Place in pot, cover in water. Cook till soft, about 20 minutes to half hour. Reserve a bit of the water.

In the meantime, roast your garlic cloves, you can leave skin on in over or toaster over for about 15 mins. Coat w PAM or another spray.

Peel and reserve soft roasted garlic.

Once potatoes are soft, mash, add garlic, butter and reserved water. Turn on small flame, slowly add warm milk ( I heat milk up a few seconds in the microwave). Stir well. 

KALE
I am loving kale lately--I think it tastes great and is the latest SUPER food!

Note that kale shrinks a lot when you are cooking w it.

1 batch of kale
Salt to taste
1 tbsp oil

Remove large stems from kale, disgard. Wash and spin dry kale.
In a large deep skillet, heat oil for about 2 minutes till it's nice and hot. 
Add kale, cook about 3 minutes per side. I leave in on each side long enough where it's a little brown. Salt to taste.

Assemble your stew, mashed potatoes and kale. Serve with a glass of Pinot Noir (optional)

NOTES: In my opinion, stew tastes even better as leftovers and my family (luckily) is happy to eat it for a few days. I usually mix it up by serving a different side dish or a different veggie. If there is not a lot of meat left, I add another protein in like frozen edamame which gives me enough dinner for another night. You can also add a can of diced tomatoes. Be creative and it will make your life easier. 

Finished product

Beef stew recipe is adapted from Real Simple Magazine as well as Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything with lots of improve by me.