Might Make It For Christmas Dinner Short Rib Ragù
Spiritual Nutrition:
🤍 White (Crown): Garlic + Onion + Thyme — pungent, antibacterial, mental uplift and energetically cleansing
💜 Indigo (Third Eye): Red wine — contains purple pigments (resveratrol-rich) and is linked to ritual and ancient perception
💚 Green (Heart): Basil + olive oil + celery — chlorophyll-rich, circulation-enhancing, lineage-connecting
🧡 Orange (Sacral): Tomato passata + Carrots — feminine expression, sensual richness, rich in beta-carotene
❤️ Red (Root): Short ribs, wooden spoon + long simmer — earth rituals, maternal steadiness
Nourishment Notes
This is not the kind of ragù you buy in a jar.
This is food as memory.
Food as warmth.
Food as homecoming.
I slow-cooked this the first time on a Sunday and nearly cried at the smell in my house. It felt ancestral—like women I never met were stirring beside me. I could feel how deeply they knew what to do. When to stir. When to season. When to let it rest.
There’s something holy about making this.
The wooden spoon. The untouched garlic. The way the meat falls apart like it already knows it’s safe.
This is a recipe I’ll pass down to my daughters, just like I’ll pass down the spoon I stirred it with. It’s motherly, celebratory, and rich in all the ways that matter.
Make it for the holidays. Make it for someone you love.
Or make it just for yourself—and let it remind you how deeply you deserve to be fed.
I love serving it alongside my Lentil Salad, an odd but incredible pairing.
Serves: 8 friends
Cook Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes (mostly hands-off)
Ingredients
Grass-Fed Local Boneless Short Ribs – 4 (ideally local and ethically sourced)
Sweet Onion – 1, diced
Organic Celery – 3 stalks, diced
Local Carrots – 2, diced
Whole Head of Garlic – peeled and smashed (not chopped)
Tomato Passata – two 24-oz jars (look for glass jars, no added sugar)
Bay Leaves – 2
Fresh Thyme – 10–15 sprigs
Local Whole Grass-Fed Milk – ¼ cup (can sub oat or cashew milk if needed)
Dry Red Wine – ¼ cup (quality matters—use something you’d drink)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1 tbsp
Fresh Basil – for topping
Parmesan – for topping
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper – to taste
Method
Prep: Season short ribs with salt and let them come to room temp.
Chop: Dice onion, celery, and carrots; peel and smash garlic cloves.
Brown Meat: Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high for 5 min. Add olive oil, then short ribs. Brown all sides (about 4–5 min per side). Transfer to a bowl.
Sauté Veggies: In the same pot, add diced veggies with a pinch of salt. Sauté ~9 min, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon. Add smashed garlic and stir for 1 more minute.
Assemble Ragù: Return short ribs and their juices to the pot. Add passata, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Cover and cook on low for 2 hours.
Add Wine + Milk: After 2 hours, stir in wine and milk. Let simmer uncovered for 1 more hour.
Shred: Remove ribs, shred on a cutting board, and return to sauce. Stir to integrate.
Serve: Spoon over your base of choice (pasta, mashed potatoes, rice, etc.). Top with fresh basil, Parmesan, and a blessing.
Share your version with me!
Tag @spiritualhealthexpert and use #thewholeyou so I can see what’s cooking in your healing kitchen!
