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Small Ribs of Beef, a LA Mode

Small beef ribs braised in sherry, brandy, consommé, then glazed and served with glazed vegetables.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Sherry and brandy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,209 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓

Small Ribs of Beef, a LA Mode

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare and braise

  1. Prepare the ribs of beef for braising.

  2. Moisten the ribs with sherry or Madeira and brandy.

  3. Simmer the ribs on the stove for about 15 minutes.

  4. Add consommé to the ribs.

  5. Cover the ribs with buttered paper and a lid.

  6. Simmer the ribs gently for 3 to 4 hours.

Glaze and serve

  1. Drain and trim the beef.

  2. Place the beef in a sauté pan with some of its own liquid.

  3. Dry the beef in the oven for 1-2 minutes before glazing.

  4. If already glazed, baste the beef frequently with its own liquid for flavor.

  5. Dish up the ribs and garnish with glazed carrots, turnips, and onions.

  6. Serve the ribs with the braising essence, clarified and reduced to half-glaze.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Sherry + brandytop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,209 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  2. Beef + sherrytop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together871 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  3. Beef + brandytop 26% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,000 recipes

    Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Ribs of beef
Long braising breaks down connective tissue, leaving the meat tender and moist.
Sherry or madeira
Fortified wine adds acidity and sweetness that deepen the flavor of the braising liquid.
Brandy
Adds aroma and depth of flavor to the moistening liquid.
Consommé
Provides a clear, savory beef liquid that flavors the meat and forms the sauce.

The step that matters

Simmer the ribs gently for 3 to 4 hours. Gentle, low heat lets collagen slowly convert to gelatin, making the meat tender and moist. A hard boil toughens the muscle fibers and can leave the meat dry and stringy.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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