I was invited to a pie-themed party this weekend and wanted to make something unique. I was torn between a beef bourguignon pot pie and a short rib pot pie. I decided to go with the short rib pie because I knew I could do the short ribs well. I decided to incorporate some saffron into the braising liquid, but you could certainly make it without the saffron if you don’t want the expense of a saffron purchase. Yes, this recipe is a bit labor-intensive, but it’s so worth it!
The red wine braised give it some acidity, which is balanced out by the potatoes, carrots, and celery. It was was a huge hit at the party. I only had two pieces left at the end.
Red Wine Braised Short Rib Pot Pie
This is a unique savory, hearty pot pie with a parmesan herb crust. It's always a showstopper with folks coming back for seconds and thirds!
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
Parmesan Herb Pie Crust
- 1½ cup cold butter cut into small cubes
- 2⅔ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ⅓ cup cold water
- ¼ lb parmesan cheese grated
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 1 tsp thyme
Braised Short Ribs
- 3 lbs boneless beef short ribs
- 1 medium onion diced
- 4 carrots finely chopped
- 3 shallots minced
- 5 cloves garlic grated or minced
- 2 ribs celery finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh rosemary tied with cooking twine
- 1 bunch fresh thyme tied with cooking twine
- 3 cups red wine
- 1½ cups beef stock
- 1 pinch saffron optional (approx. 20 threads)
- Olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- kosher salt
- Pepper
Other
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 lb potatoes
Instructions
Parmesan Herb Pie Crust
- Add dry ingredients to bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine.
- Add butter cubes.
- Add water gradually (approx. 1 tbsp at a time.) You might not need all of the water. Continue to pulse until crumbs become wet and begin to stick together, but do not over-process. It should not form a dough ball.
- Dump crumby pie crust mixture onto a floured work surface and form two balls of equal size.
- Shape into two discs. Cover each disc with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Braised Short Ribs
- Prepare the onion, carrots, shallots, garlic, and celery and set aside. Preheat oven to 325°.
- Season the short ribs on all sides with salt and pepper.
- Preheat a dutch oven or braiser on the stovetop over medium-high heat.
- Coat the bottom of the pan in small amount of olive oil.
- Brown short ribs for 2 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.
- Add 1 tbsp butter to the pot. Transfer the onion, carrots, shallots, garlic, and celery to the pot.
- Cook the vegetables, stirring occasionally, until the onions are caramelized.
- Deglaze the pot with about 1 cup of the red wine.
- Return the short ribs to the pot.
- Add the beef stock and remaining red wine. The liquid should cover the short ribs by half.
- Transfer the pot to the oven and cook covered for 2½ hours. Check every 45 minuets to 1 hour. The liquid should reduce by a lot, but add more if it begins to completely dry up. By the end, there should be some liquid, but it will have reduced by 50% to 75%.
- Add rosemary, thyme, and optional saffron, ensuring they are at least partially submerged in the liquid (also OK to be completely submerged).
- Remove the lid and cook uncovered for 15 minutes. Move on to the next steps while the short ribs are finishing.
Pot Pie
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Meanwhile, peel potatoes and cut into a small dice. Transfer potatoes to a saute pan with 1 tbsp butter. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. (Move on to the next step while potatoes are cooking, when 15 minutes of uncovered short rib cooking time is up)
- Remove the short ribs from the oven. Set short ribs aside on a plate to rest. Do not discard the veggies and liquid in the pot.
- Use a slotted spoon, remove the veggies from the short rib pot and transfer them to the pan with the potatoes. Stir to combine. Continue to cook until potatoes are cooked through, then set aside.
- Remove all of the meat from the short ribs and discard the pieces of fat. Set aside.
- Place pot with the braising liquid onto the stovetop and heat on high to bring to a boil. Combine 1 tbsp cornstarch with 1 tbsp very cold water. Stream the cornstarch mixture into the braising liquid, whisking constantly. The liquid should thicken quickly. Remove pot from heat.
- Add the short ribs and vegetables to the pot with the thickened braising liquid and stir until everything is well-combined.
- Grease a large pie pan and dust with flour. Roll out pie crust for the bottom of the pie onto a well-floured surface. Transfer the pie crust to the pie pan. Poke a few sets of holes in the bottom of the crust using a fork (and use a pie bird if you have one).
- Roll out the pie crust for the top of the pie on a well-floured surface.
- Transfer the pot pie filling to the pie pan.
- Add the top crust, pinching the edges together to seal. Use a knife or kitchen shears to trim the excess crust from the edges.
- Cut slits in the top of the pie crust to vent.
- Whisk together 1 egg and 1 tbsp water. Use a pastry brush to coat the pie crust in the egg wash mixture.
- Cover the edges of the crust in aluminum foil to prevent burning.
- Transfer the pie to the oven. Cook for about 30-50 minutes until the crust is golden.
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