Root Beer Beef Short Ribs

Root Beer Beef Short Ribs

Over the summer, Mr. Man and I planned a trip to Niagara’s wine country. If you haven’t been, you definitely need to go – even if you are not a wine drinker. Many of the wineries also have restaurants and the food, regardless of which winery you visit, is amazing.

While on the trip, we stopped by a restaurant and I ordered the beef short ribs. Let me tell you, these were the best short ribs I have ever tasted in my life. Mr. Man and I spent months dreaming of revisiting just for these short ribs.

sweet root beer short rib

I decided, instead of dreaming, I was going to figure out how to make this recipe.

I visited the restaurant’s website and viewed the menu to see how they described it. And from there, I developed a recipe, though not exact, it sure comes close!

The recipe (or at least the menu) called for root beer, which I would not have expected. I am not usually a root beer fan and thought that this may have given the beef a, kind of sweeter taste that I’m not sure I would enjoy.

slow cooked beef shot ribs

Sure enough, I tried it, and it tasted amazing!

It's not too sweet (like I would have expected by the name) but instead, gives a subtle sweetness - kind of a "what is that?" flavour. 

When slow cooked in the slow cooker, the meat is so tender, it practically falls off the bone. Straight up, deliciousness.

Whats great about this recipe is that it takes only 20 minutes to prep and then the slow cooker does the rest of the work for you! I let mine cook overnight or while I'm at work, for 10 hours, but you can adjust the time to work with your schedule. 

root beer beef short Ribs.jpg
Rootbeer Beef Short Ribs

Makes: 2 servings

Prep time:

Cook time:

Ingredients:
  • 2 lbs beef short ribs
  • 1 can root beer
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 250 ml (2 cups) beef broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 onion, sliced
  • salt to taste
  • black pepper to taste
  • 2 springs rosemary
  • 2 bay leaves

Instructions:
  1. Season beef short ribs with salt, pepper and Chinese five spice
  2. In a skillet with 1 tbsp of oil, saute onions and garlic on medium-high heat
  3. Add the short ribs, searing on all sides (approximately 2 minutes on each side).
  4. Place seared short ribs in the slow cooker
  5. Add the beef broth to the skillet, deglazing the onions and garlic for approximately 5 minutes
  6. Pour the deglazing mixture into the slow cooker with the short ribs.
  7. Add the root beer, rosemary and bayleaves to the slow cooker.
  8. Set the slow cooker for 10 hours.