Braising 101
The way I shop is to go to the market and see what looks good and is on sale and then figure out what I'm going to do with it. My local supermarket had a rack of grass fed short ribs on sale and I knew immediately what I was going to make with it.
Quite often I make what I call the non-stewed stew. Stewing involves cooking a piece of meat and/or bones submersed in a cooking liquid, and while this is a great dish, the problem is that while your meat flavors the liquid, it tends to wash the meaty flavors out and the meat itself is rendered fairly dry and flavorless. Braising on the other hand tends to do the reverse. It allows you to infuse the meat with a lot of flavor while it's cooking, but still allows you to make a nice gravy. Traditionally braising is done in a pan with a small amount of liquid in the bottom. I prefer to do it inside a sealed packet of aluminum foil so you don't have to worry about all the liquid evaporating. Rather than a thin braising liquid, I go for more of a paste that I coat the meat witch. You don't need much liquid. The meat will give up it's own liquid while braising and you'll wind up with more than you started.
This method works with just about any meat, but I prefer cheap pieces like chuck or short ribs, and preferably something that has a bone in it. Pork shoulder also works well.
Lightly coat the meat with oil and salt generously, then leave out at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
Sear the meat on all sides on an oiled heavy skillet, then set aside on a big sheet of aluminum foil.
Add 1/2 cup each chopped celery, onions, and carrots to the pan and saute until soft.
Deglaze the pan with about 1/3rd cup of apple cider vinegar. Pour this into a blender along with 2 tsp worcestershire sauce and 2 tsp paprika (preferably smoked paprika) and blend until smooth.
Brush all the liquid ingredients onto the meat until thoroughly coated, then seal up the aluminum foil and place on a small sheet pan.
Place into a 250F oven and cook for 4 hours.
Cut off one of the corners and drain the liquid into a 2 cup glass measuring cup or just a drinking glass.
Remove and discard the bones. Cut the meat into 1" chunks, and store covered in the refrigerator along with the cup full of liquid. Store for a few hours or up to a couple of days.
After several hours the fat will separate to the top of the measuring cup. Remove the fat cap and set aside about 2 tbs. Use this to lightly saute some onion chopped into 1" pieces along with whatever other aromatic vegetables you like in your stew like fennel, celery, carrots, etc. Keep the rest of the fat cap for later.
Add some fingerling potatoes or cubed red potatoes, and pour in the reserved liquid along with enough V8 vegetable juice to just cover the potatoes in a large stew pot over medium heat.
Tie together about 2-4 different herbs with butcher's twine and drop in the pot. I like to use some combination of rosemary, thyme, sage, parsley, and/or bay leaves.
Once the potatoes are tender, add the meat and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove the herbs and season to taste with salt, pepper, and/or hot pepper sauce. If you like a thicker gravy, mix equal parts (1-2 Tbs each) of your reserved fat and flour until well combined. Add this to the boiling mixture and stir until thickened.
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