Butter Braised Short Ribs — Keto, Seed Oil Free, Fall Apart Tender

By Savannah Ryan — The Foodie Kitchen

Short ribs are the most rewarding cut of beef to braise — they contain enough intramuscular fat and collagen to become genuinely extraordinary over low heat, and they are virtually impossible to overcook. This keto version uses beef tallow for the initial sear, bone broth as the braising liquid and butter stirred in at the end to create a glossy, restaurant-quality sauce with zero carbohydrates and zero seed oils. The collagen in the short ribs converts to gelatin during the 3-hour braise, giving the sauce a body and richness that stock-cube-and-canola-oil versions never approach. This is Sunday cooking at its best — 20 minutes of hands-on work and 3 hours of the oven doing everything else.

Find more in the MAHA recipes collection and the detox recipes collection. For the complete seed oil free guide — The 7 Day Reset by Savannah Ryan.

Why Short Ribs Are the Perfect Keto MAHA Cut

Short ribs are cut from the chuck or plate section of the beef and contain a high ratio of intramuscular fat, connective tissue and bone — all of which contribute to the finished dish in different ways. The intramuscular fat renders during braising and bastes the meat from the inside. The connective tissue converts to gelatin, which thickens the braising liquid into a sauce of natural richness without flour, cornstarch or any thickener. The bone contributes minerals and marrow to the liquid. A keto diet built around cuts like short ribs, oxtail and lamb shoulder — cooked in tallow and butter rather than vegetable oil — is nutritionally far superior to keto versions that use canola-oil-based products. According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, the combination of grass-fed beef fat and bone broth provides fat-soluble vitamins, CLA and gut-supporting collagen simultaneously. Research on PubMed confirms the anti-inflammatory properties of the conjugated linoleic acid found in grass-fed beef tallow.

Butter Braised Short Ribs — The Recipe

Serves 4 | Prep 15 minutes | Cook 3 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1.5kg bone-in beef short ribs — approximately 4 to 6 pieces
• 2 tablespoons beef tallow
• 1 large onion, roughly diced
• 4 cloves garlic, roughly crushed
• 2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
• 300ml good beef bone broth
• 100ml dry red wine — optional, omit for strict keto
• 2 tablespoons grass-fed butter
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• Half teaspoon smoked paprika

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Pat the short ribs completely dry and season generously with salt, pepper and smoked paprika on all surfaces.

2. Heat the tallow in a heavy oven-safe Dutch oven or casserole over maximum heat until smoking. Sear the short ribs in batches — do not crowd the pan. Sear each surface for 3 minutes until deeply crusted and dark brown. This step takes 15 to 20 minutes total and is the flavour foundation of the entire dish.

3. Remove the short ribs and set aside. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion, garlic and celery to the same pot in the rendered fat. Cook for 5 minutes until softened and picking up the fond from the bottom of the pan.

4. If using wine, add it now and scrape the bottom of the pan thoroughly — all the dark fond dissolves into the liquid and becomes flavour. Cook 2 minutes until reduced by half.

5. Add the bone broth, thyme and rosemary. Return the short ribs to the pot — they should be half submerged. Add the butter in pieces across the top.

6. Cover tightly and place in the oven for 3 hours. The ribs are done when the meat pulls away from the bone with no resistance and the internal temperature exceeds 93°C.

7. Remove the ribs carefully. Strain the braising liquid, return it to the pot and reduce over high heat for 5 minutes until glossy. Spoon over the ribs to serve.

Butter braised short ribs prove that keto cooking does not require compromise — when the fat is right and the cut is right, the result is better than any restaurant. For a complete 7-day seed oil free keto meal plan — The 7 Day Reset by Savannah Ryan. Find more in the MAHA recipes collection and the detox recipes collection. Also see the beef tallow smash burgers for another outstanding seed oil free beef recipe. More fast MAHA meals at the MAHA meal prep guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are short ribs keto?
Yes. Bone-in beef short ribs are one of the best keto cuts — they contain high amounts of fat and protein with zero carbohydrates. Braised in bone broth and butter without flour or starchy vegetables, short ribs are a complete keto meal.

What fat should I use to sear short ribs?
Beef tallow is the best fat for searing short ribs because its high smoke point of approximately 420°F allows the deep, dark crust to form rapidly without the fat burning or producing off-flavours. The crust is the flavour foundation of the entire braise.

How long do short ribs take to braise?
Bone-in short ribs braised at 160°C take 3 hours to become fall-apart tender. The internal temperature should exceed 93°C — well above the food-safe threshold — because the high temperature is what converts connective tissue to gelatin and produces the characteristic texture.

Can I make short ribs in a slow cooker?
Yes. After the tallow sear and sautéed aromatics, transfer everything to a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 5 hours. The result is fall-apart tender with the same depth of flavour as the oven braise.

Is this recipe seed oil free?
Completely. The only fats used are beef tallow for searing and grass-fed butter for the braise — both ancestral fats with no canola, vegetable, soybean or any industrial seed oil.

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