Hot DAMN, these Moroccan-style short ribs are good. I mean look at them. The nice char on the meat, the chunky stew laden with briny olives and jammy dried apricots, the perfect seasoning (a spice blend with all the faves: cumin, coriander, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne and ginger) … it’s enough to make a girl go all googly-eyed.
I mean, just look.
It’s the perfect weekend dinner project, with the bonus of making your home smell divine. I could go on and on, but I’m too busy drooling over these photos.
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 English-cut short ribs (about 3 pounds), patted dry
- 3 medium carrots, sliced into 1/2 inch-thick coins
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 2 cups low-sodium stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup chopped mixed olives
- 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- In a large Dutch oven, heat up the olive oil on medium high. Liberally salt and pepper the short ribs, then brown them in batches. Take your time here — this will impart so much flavor. Set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium low, then add the carrots, onion and garlic. Saute until the vegetables have softened and browned slightly.
- Stir in the tomato paste, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, ginger, paprika and cayenne. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the tomatoes, stock, bay leaf, olives, and apricots. Nestle the short ribs back in the pot. Increase the heat and bring the liquid to a boil.
- Once the liquid has boiled for a minute, turn off the heat. Cover the pot and carefully transfer it to the oven. Cook for 2-1/2 hours, until the short ribs are tender and can be easily pierced by a fork.
- Transfer the pot from the oven to the stove and uncover. Skim as much fat as possible from the top of the pot. Carefully remove the short ribs from the pot (it’s ok if the bones come loose).
- Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce by half, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently to ensure none of the vegetables stick to the bottom of the pot. Serve the short ribs with the sauce on top.
I am making this tonight. When do I add the apricots?
when does one add the apricots?
Step 3, along with the olives and bay leaf