Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs
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Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs – Seriously, these are too good and too easy not to make! The flavor you get from using both red wine and pomegranate is incredibly rich.
Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs
Hubs and I finally had a date night. It was the first time we had been out without the boys in months. I got the idea for these slow-cooker short ribs after visiting a local restaurant that night. They had a Short-Rib recipe as an appetizer, served with blue-cheese polenta. Hubs don’t like blue cheese, so I knew that wouldn’t work. He loved the short ribs, so that’s what I wanted to focus on.
I actually have another short rib recipe that is cooked in the oven. It’s very good, but I wanted something I could fix and forge,t so I tried using the slow cooker. It worked like a charm!
Slow Cooker Short Ribs
These ribs are tender and succulent. This is an easy recipe that yields a hearty, rich dinner.
My whole purpose for using a slow cooker was to have a hands-off experience, and my kids are keeping me extremely busy this summer. I don’t have time to babysit a three-hour dinner!
How to sear meat
To get a rich brown crust on Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs, brown it in a hot pan. Searing caramelizes the sugars and browns the proteins present in meat. It results in a more appealing color and richer flavor.
- You can sear all kinds of meat. I usually sear tougher cuts of meat that require a long cook time.
- Allow the meat to sit at room temperature for a while before searing; this allows the moisture to reabsorb into the meat.
- Season the meat with salt and pepper; these seasonings stick to the meat and flavor the crust.
- If you have marinated or brined the meat, do not add salt before searing.
- If your marinade contains sugar, be careful when searing. The sugar burns quickly.
- Make sure, when searing, to use a very hot pan. If the pan is cool, the meat can stick and tear.
- If you use a fatty cut of meat, like a roast or short ribs, you don’t need to add oil to the pan. However, if you use a leaner cut, like pork roast or loin, you need to add 1 to 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the pan before searing
- The method for adding oil will be: get your pan hot, then add the oil. Once the oil ripples, immediately add the meat before the oil begins to smoke.
Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs Tips
After browning the meat, I simply added it to the slow cooker, where I had already added the other ingredients. I set the temperature on low and let it cook for 7 hours. It was perfect when Hubs got home!
I like to serve Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Basic Risotto, or Slow Cooker Cheese Grits.
You may also like my Best Damn Short Ribs or Molasses Pomegranate Braised Short Ribs recipe.
Also, try these recipes
Berry & Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
25+ Slow Cooker Meals for Busy Weeknights
Homemade Slow Cooker Barbecue Sauce(
For more, see all my time-saving slow cooker recipes. Hamburger Steak with Onions Brown Gravy is also a family favorite.
Red Wine Pomegranate Slow Cooker Short Ribs
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Ingredients
- 3 pounds beef short ribs
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
- 1 large white onion cut into quarters
- 4 cloves garlic clove minced
- 4 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 and ½ cup pomegranate juice
- 1 cup red wine I use Cabernet Sauvignon
- ⅓ cup beef broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Heat a heavy bottom pot or Dutch oven on medium high heat.
- Sprinkle short ribs with salt and pepper and 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- Once the pan is hot, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the short ribs.
- Sear meat on every side. It may take 1 minute per side.
- Meanwhile, add onion, garlic, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, pomegranate juice, red wine, beef stock, thyme, rosemary, and red pepper to slow cooker.
- Remove short ribs from pan and place in slow cooker.
- Cook on low 7 to 8 hours or high 4 to 5 hours. Time will depend on size of rib and how many you have in pan. Test with a fork. I like them to be falling off the bone.
I want to try this tomorrow; however, your gravy instructions confused me. “Allow to simmer for 30 to 45 minutes or until desired thickness.” Simmer gravy for 45 minutes?
I refer to it as gravy for lack of a better word, maybe au jus is more accurate. You don’t have to do the step to thicken it that I included in the notes. It’f flavorful as is. I like to add the cornstarch and cook the sauce longer so that it condenses and thickens – it’s totally optional.
Amazing ribs! Definitely a repeat.
Hello! What kind of red wine should i use? Cabernet?
Yes, I like Cabernet Sauvignon. It doesn’t have to be a crazy expensive one, but I cook with wine that I’d drink.
These were delish! HH liked a lot! I used chicken stock instead of beef because that’s what I had on hand. Also added about 3 Tbs. Balsamic. Skipped the pomegranate juice. Increased wine.
I’m making these tomorrow and just realized I bought boneless shortribs instead of bone-in, which it definitely looks like yours are bone-in from the pictures. Do you think I should increase the sauce or just follow the recipe as is? The recipe looks divine!!!
Just a quick question on the recipe: What exactly is ‘4 tablespoons cup’ brown sugar? Is this 4T or 4T plus 1 cup? I’m thinking it’s just 4T, but I want to make sure I have all of the ingredients correct before I make this. Thank you!
oh geez, sorry about that, sometimes I look at a recipe for so long, I can’t see the errors. It is 4 tablespoons. I corrected it in the recipe. Thanks for letting me know! Hope you enjoy it, Mary.
What can I use instead of red wine, more beef stock? Family doesn’t drink so we never have wine on hand!
Yes, add an extra 1 cup beef stock or you can do 1/2 pomegranate juice and 1/2 beef stock. Hope you love them!