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You don’t need to wait for a holiday or dinner party to make our chipotle short ribs. This recipe goes all in on smoky, slow-cooked flavor with chipotle peppers, garlic, and a rich tomato base. It’s the kind of meal that feels like comfort food without being overly fussy.
These short ribs braise in the oven until the meat practically falls off the bone. You can serve them over creamy polenta, mashed potatoes, or shred the meat for tacos and sandwiches. Bonus: they reheat well and they’re even better the next day.
Here is Why This Recipe Works
Bold, smoky flavor. The chipotle-tomato braising sauce brings heat, depth, and just the right amount of drama.
Fork-tender. Low and slow is the name of the game—these ribs practically shred themselves.
Versatile enough for leftovers. Serve them over polenta, pile them into tacos, or slap them on a sandwich. No one’s complaining.
Make-ahead friendly. The flavor only gets better the next day (and the fat’s easier to skim when it’s cold; just saying).
The Ingredients
- Meat: Bone-in chuck short ribs
- Produce: Onion, garlic, Fresh oregano
- Pantry: Canned tomatoes, tomato paste, beef broth, cooking oil, Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- Pantry seasonings: Salt, ground black pepper, ground cumin, dried Mexican spice mix, bay leaves
Recipe Variations
Sweet and Spicy Chipotle Short Ribs: Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of brown sugar or honey to the sauce to balance the smoky heat.
Chipotle Short Ribs with Orange and Cinnamon: Add ½ cup of orange juice and a cinnamon stick to the braising liquid for a subtle citrusy warmth.
Beer-Braised Chipotle Short Ribs: Replace 1 cup of the beef broth with a dark Mexican beer like Negra Modelo.
You might also like our beer braised short ribs or our red wine braised short ribs.
Recipe Tips
Pat the ribs dry before searing. This helps them brown properly.
Don’t crowd the pot. Brown the ribs in batches so they sear instead of steam.
Check the liquid halfway through. After about 1½ hours in the oven, take a peek and add more broth if things are looking dry.
Make it ahead if you can. The flavor deepens overnight, and the chilled fat is easy to remove before reheating.
Use a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. This ensures even heat and helps prevent burning during the long braise.
Adjust the chipotle to your heat preference. Start with fewer peppers if you’re sensitive to spice, then stir in more adobo sauce at the end if you want extra kick.
If you’re not serving the ribs whole, pull the meat from the bones and stir it back into the sauce; it makes great leftovers, too.
Save the bones. Toss them in a freezer bag to use later when making homemade beef broth.
Storing Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Let the short ribs cool completely, then transfer the meat and sauce to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Place the cooled ribs and sauce in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Reheat: Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until warmed through. Add a splash of broth if the sauce has thickened too much.
Braised Short Ribs in Chipotle Tomato Sauce
These smoky chipotle short ribs are the kind of meal that earns you quiet, satisfied nods around the table. No last-minute scrambling, no fussy ingredients, just deep, slow-cooked flavor and a sauce you’ll want to spoon over everything.
Serve them over creamy polenta, tuck the meat into warm tortillas, or stash the leftovers for a low-effort meal tomorrow. Either way, this recipe shows up. It’s bold, comforting, and just a little bit dramatic (in the best way).
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Smoky Chipotle Short Ribs
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Ingredients
- 4 to 4½ pounds meaty chuck short ribs, bone in about 6 pieces
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 6 garlic cloves, grated or minced
- 1 (15 ounce) can canned tomatoes, whole or diced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 to 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, to your taste preference (don't use the whole can)
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried Mexican spice mix
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2-3 bay leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 275°F.
- Pat the short ribs dry and season all sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Working in batches, sear the ribs on all sides until well browned, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Don’t overcrowd the pot, brown in two batches if needed. Transfer the browned ribs to a plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the pot. Add the chopped onion and sauté for 2 to 4 minutes, until softened. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- In a blender or food processor, combine the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, and chipotle peppers. Blend until smooth.
- Pour the tomato mixture into the pot with the onions and garlic. Stir in the cumin, oregano, and Mexican spice mix.
- Add the beef broth and bay leaves, then return the short ribs to the pot. The ribs should be mostly covered in liquid; add a little more broth if needed.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer on the stovetop. Cover the pot and transfer it to the oven. Braise for 2½ to 3 hours, or until the meat is fork-tender and pulls apart easily.
- After 1½ hours, check the liquid level. If it looks low, add more broth and cover again.
- Once the ribs are fork-tender, remove the pot from the oven. Use a spoon to skim off any excess fat from the surface of the sauce.
- Before serving, remove the bay leaves. Serve the short ribs whole or shred the meat and stir it back into the sauce.
Notes
- After the ribs have been braising for 1½ hours, remove the lid and check the level of the liquid, adding additional broth if necessary. Recover the pot and continue cooking until they are fork-tender.
- The spicy adobo flavor dissipates as the short ribs braise. For a more spicy flavor, stir additional adobo sauce into the braising sauce just before serving.
- If making this dish a day in advance, transfer the beef ribs to a plate, cover and refrigerate. Place Dutch oven in the refrigerator and when the accumulated fat hardens remove and discard it. To reheat, return the beef ribs to the Dutch oven, set on the stovetop over medium-low heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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