Slow Cooker Short Ribs
These Slow Cooker Short Ribs are outrageously good. No collection of words can fully capture their glorious flavor, aroma, and tenderness, and they are really easy to make.
It’s almost unfair how good and easy this recipe is, but I suppose if you start with a piece of beef as magical as short ribs, it’s bound to be great.
Much like Prime Rib or a cut of Beef Tenderloin, you just can’t go wrong.
Why This Recipe Is So Great
Incredible tenderness – It’s unreal how tender the beef gets when it cooks low and slow, and it shreds like a dream. It’s one of the few cuts of meat that really does seem to melt in your mouth.
It smells amazing – So much of our experience eating food is influenced by our sense of smell, and this is an incredibly aromatic dish. Getting to smell this dish cooking for 6 hours might be even better than eating it. The aroma is that incredible, and always makes me really excited to sit down for dinner.
Mostly hands off – With a little prep at the beginning, you mostly get to let all the ingredients cook together in the slow cooker, gently, and hands off. It’s easier than letting it simmer on the stove or braising in the oven.
The flavor is full and rich, with minimal ingredients – With a mirepoix flavor base of onion, carrots, and celery, a braising liquid combination of red wine and beef stock, and thyme and bay leaf for aromatics, it gives fullness of flavor without a crazy long ingredient list.
As much as I sometimes rely on the simplicity of our weekly Slow Cooker Pulled Pork, what I always love about this dish is all the bells and whistles of flavor and aroma, while still being a simple slow cooker meal.
With that said, this isn’t a “throw everything in” crockpot recipe. We will take a few minutes to sear the beef first, and let me tell you, this makes ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
Believe me, I tested it.
Searing Makes a Huge Difference
I tested a batch without searing the beef, just to see how big of a difference it makes, and it’s huge. It didn’t even taste like the same dish.
An extra bonus to this is that starting the ingredients on the stove shaves at least an hour off cook time in the slow cooker.
Make sure to follow the recipe as written, and you will be rewarded. See how tender and succulent the short ribs are:
It’s just like at the restaurant!
Any Slow Cooker Will Work
Before we begin, you obviously need a slow cooker, but it need not be fancy or expensive.
I bought this small Proctor-Silex one (affiliate) for $15 eight years ago, and it always worked great.
I recently upgraded to a much larger one, the BLACK+DECKER 7 Qt. Stainless Steel Electric Slow Cooker (affiliate), and it works just as well.
I’ve used both regularly for things like Crockpot Chicken Breast and Slow Cooker Asian Pork Tacos, and even though the more expensive slow cookers have more bells and whistles, they aren’t required here.
How to Make It Step by Step:
Prep the Vegetables:
Slice half an onion, one carrot, and one rib of celery:
Place the bowl right by the stove where you’ll be cooking.
Prep the Beef:
Place the meat on a paper towel-lined plate, and blot all over with a paper towel.
This removes extra moisture and makes it easier for us to get a good sear and caramelization on the outside.
Next, season well with salt and freshly cracked black pepper:
Sear the Beef:
Heat a skillet over medium high heat and brown the short ribs all over, using a little bit of ghee or other high-heat cooking fat:
This takes me about 5 minutes, but it’s important to be thorough about it and go more by color than time. The browning is essential for flavor.
Heat the Braising Liquid and Vegetables:
Remove the short ribs to a plate, then add the vegetables to the pan. Season with dried thyme, a bay leaf, and salt, then add beef stock or bone broth, red wine, and a smidge of honey:
Bring this mixture to a boil, to get everything hot. This shaves at least an hour off cook time in the crockpot.
Combine Everything in the Slow Cooker:
Pour all the liquid and vegetables into the crock of your slow cooker.
Nestle in the seared short ribs, and know that it’s okay if they aren’t completely submerged:
Cook for about 5-6 hours, until the short ribs are tender and the bones easily fall out.
Serve them up with the cooking juices and softened vegetables spooned over, and feel free to pair with a starch like Rice Pilaf to make the meal go further.
Roasted Carrots, Brussel Sprouts with Candied Pecans and Ricotta Salata, or Sweet Potato Rice are also great here. Enjoy!
Recipe FAQ:
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Yes, in an airtight container for up to two months.
You can absolutely double or even triple the recipe. But, you’ll need a pretty large crockpot, and you will need to take the time to sear the beef properly. Otherwise, it works great.
While you can without affecting the cooking, the flavor will suffer greatly. The red wine is an important element for the aroma and flavor.
I’ve tried a huge range of both grass fed and conventional beef, and I recommend conventional beef for a more juicy and tender result. My absolute favorite is Certified Angus Beef.
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Slow Cooker Short Ribs
Ingredients
For the Short Ribs:
- 2 lbs bone-in short ribs (I had 4 pieces)
- 2 tbsp ghee (or other high-heat cooking fat)
- 2 cups sliced yellow onion (about 1/2 a softball-sized onion)
- 1 cup sliced carrot (1 medium carrot)
- 3/4 cup sliced celery (1 celery rib)
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup red wine (I used a French bordeaux)
- 1 cup beef stock (I actually use beef bone broth, which can be easier to find)
- 1 tbsp honey
- kosher salt
- black pepper
Recommended Side Dishes:
Instructions
- Pat the short ribs dry with a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture. Then season the short ribs all over with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, then add the ghee. Sear the short ribs on all sides until browned and caramelized, about 5 minutes total. The browning is what you're looking for, so take the time it needs to develop that color and flavor.
- Remove the short ribs to a plate, then add the onion, carrot, and celery to the pan. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, and add the thyme and bay leaf. Toss for 1 minute to allow the moisture from the vegetables to deglaze the pan and incorporate the fat and juices.
- Add the wine, beef stock, and honey, and bring to a boil, which should take a few minutes. Then pour the contents of the pan into the crock of your slow cooker. Nestle the short ribs into the liquid, submerging it the best you can (but it's fine if they aren't completely submerged).
- Cook on high heat for 5 to 6 hours, until the short ribs are tender and falling off the bone. You can test a piece with a fork by checking that the meat shreds easily. If it doesn't, cook for another hour and test again. Serve with the juices and vegetables. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
Post updated in July 2021. Originally published October 2013.
33 Comments on “Slow Cooker Short Ribs”
If you have boneless short ribs, does that adjust what I should plan on the cooking time to be? Thank you!
I would check at the 5 hour point. The cook time shouldn’t be dramatically different since the pieces are so small.
Absolutely delicious! My husband said it was “restaurant quality”!
Hi Paige, so happy to hear this! Glad you both enjoyed.
If I double the recipe to 4 lbs do I have to increase the cooking time?
If you have a larger slow cooker and the meat can rest in a single layer, then no need to increase cooking time.
I tried this today and it was delicious. There was no direction as to what to do with the sauce, so I blended the veggies with the gravy and added some cornstarch to thicken and heated. This worked very well. I would absolutely make this again!
I made this over the weekend and it came out great. Thanks!
about how many people would this recipe feed?
Hi Valerie, I think it depends on who you’re feeding, but for this recipe I assume that if you have 4 short ribs equalling 2 pounds, that would feed 4, assuming you’re serving this with sides. However, you can add more short ribs to the slow cooker if you want to feed more. The liquid doesn’t need to cover the meat, so no need to double everything else. Hope that helps!