Braised short ribs

In a large pot bring the wine to a boil and ignite it; add the mirepoix, cover and cook 5 minutes, then cool to room temperature.

Cooking off the alcohol first lets the meat absorb the wine's flavour instead of having its surface cooked by the alcohol.

Arrange the short ribs in the bottom of a pot, cover with the room-temperature marinade and refrigerate covered 12 to 24 hours.

Remove the meat, pat dry and save the marinade.

In a hot heavy-bottomed pot or cast-iron Dutch oven, sear the meat in high-smoke-point oil a few minutes on both sides until brown, salting the bottom of the pot rather than the meat; no pepper yet.

Transfer to a clean container and sear the remaining meat without extra oil, going easy on salt.

Saute the mirepoix from the marinade for five minutes and transfer to a bowl.

Return the meat to the pot, cover with the mirepoix, add the meat juices, the wine from the marinade, port and reduced beef stock; season with ground black pepper.

Bring to a boil, cover and cook in the oven six hours at 250 degrees Fahrenheit, 121 degrees Celsius.

Turn off the oven and leave the pot inside overnight to keep cooking slowly.

Discard the vegetables and aromatics and carefully remove the short ribs.

Lay the short ribs on a parchment-lined baking tray, cover with more parchment, weight them, and refrigerate until completely hard, overnight.

Pass the braising liquid and reduce it by half, skimming off excess fat and impurities, for the sauce.

Cut the short ribs into individual portions; keep the scraps for other dishes.

Heat the sauce, melt in a couple of chunks of butter to make it glossy, and coat the meat, basting every so often over low heat on the stove or in the oven.