We often forget that the Brits have a rich history of enjoying beef.  Many of our most savory beef dishes can be traced to England.  On occasions of the Monarchy’s weddings and coronations, the term “Royal” and “Crown” were tagged along with their favorite recipes.  This dish was prepared for King James II in 1728 at his coronation.  The striking presentation of this dish can fill an entire plate and for beef lovers the short ribs offer some of the best flavor.  Below, is a contemporary version of a classic dish that most rib enthusiasts have never heard of.   If one desired to get fancy around the Holidays with an historic reenactment of this meal, it might be served with a first course of sweetbreads and oysters and then the ribs accompanied with roasted onions and perhaps some dice of ox tongue.  Our version pares well with Yukon Gold potatoes or even polenta and cheese.  If you enjoy the adventure at your table then have fun with this one!  And no better time than a cool fall evening. 

First, the cut.  You need to ask your butcher to prep the ribs.  He will cut the rib meat off of the top part of the rib and then truss or tie this piece to the bottom part of the rib.  This will look like a large shank and is cooked in a similar way.  How many do you need?  One rib prepared this way will feed aprox 1.5  people.  This means a hungry guy will likely finish one rib whereas a lady does well to finish half, even with a robust appetite. 

Method’ summary:  The ribs are seared then slow braised in a Dutch Oven at a low temperature for 5 hours, left overnight to cool, then the fat skimmed off and re-heated and prepared the following day.   You can omit the overnight method, but the ribs will tend to be too rich (from fat).  

2  Beef Short Ribs, frenched and trussed in the royal fashion, as a pre-order from Porterhouse
1  Medium onion, large dice
½ C.  diced carrot
½ C.  diced celery
14 oz, low sodium, low fat chicken broth
14 oz, low sodium, low fat beef broth
¾ TBL. whole coriander
½ TBL. whole fennel seed
1   Tsp. cumin seed
¾ TBL black peppercorns
1 Star Anise
½ C. Port or full bodied red wine
2 TBL  Blackberry  jam
½  TBL  fresh thyme, chopped
½  TBL  fresh rosemary

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees.  Use lower rack.

First, sear the ribs on all sides in a hot pan with a little olive oil.  Best to do one at a time, depending on the size of pan, using tongs to turn.  Remove ribs after browning. 

In a large Dutch oven, add 1 TBL butter and 1 TBL Olive oil over medium/high temp. Add the onion, carrot and celery and saute’ for a few minutes. Stir on occasion until onions are transparent.

While the vegetables are sautéing, toast the coriander, fennel seed, cumin seed, peppercorns, and star anise in a hot pan until aromatic, about 3 -4 minutes. Remove from heat and put toasted spices in a mortar and pestle and grind until semi-fine.  Add port or red wine to the vegetables in the Dutch oven and cook down for a minute or two.

Season the ribs with the aromatic spices and place in Dutch oven, on top of the vegetables.  Pour the chicken broth and beef broth around the ribs leaving most of the ribs above the level of liquid.  All of the broth might not be used depending on the size of the Dutch oven. 

Slow braise the ribs for about 5 hours at 230 degrees.  Check several times for moisture content of the pan and that the ribs are becoming tender.  Remove pan from oven and cool overnight. 

The following day skim off the fat from the mixture of ribs and vegetables.  Remove the ribs from the pan.  Gently warm the remaining mixture until liquid and then strain the vegetables away from the broth. (try not to discard any of the gelatin, as you are removing the layer of fat)

When ready to serve, heat the remaining broth, add the 2 TBL of jam and some additional port; increase temp to low boil.  Reduction should be ready when lightly coating the back of a spoon.  Add the chopped thyme and rosemary.  Take off the heat.  Plate the ribs and pour the reduction over the ribs.  Garnish with a sprig of thyme or rosemary.  A garnish of cremolata is good too.

Side dishes can be Yukon gold potatoes, polenta and cheese, roasted potatoes and parsnips, or any root vegetables of preference.  

As an option, you can snip the twine off the ribs before serving or do this at the table with a sharp knife or scissors.  For presentation, the ribs look the best while still on the bone. 

Wine suggestions vary, but the dish calls for a full bodied red; Cabernet from California, Syrah from Walla Walla, even Malbec from Argentina.  This recipe was served with a 2005 Syrah from Dunham Cellars in Walla Walla, Wa.  

Chef’s Secret:  You can use this identical recipe for Lamb Shanks.