Red Wine-Braised Short Rib Chili

This is chili with a passport to Burgundy. It starts like a French braise — bone-in short ribs seared hard, a whole bottle of red wine reduced down to something dark and glossy — and then takes a hard turn for Texas with toasted ancho chiles and cumin. Three and a half hours in the oven later, the short ribs surrender off the bone into a sauce so rich it's almost a sin, the wine and beef and chiles melting into one deep, velvety whole. It's a project, no question, but it's the kind of chili that turns a cold Sunday into an event — the pot you make when you want the house to smell incredible all afternoon.

Rich enough to serve small — over mashed potatoes or polenta as much as in a bowl. A gremolata or fresh thyme cuts the richness.

Use a wine you'd drink (Cabernet or Zinfandel); boneless short ribs or chuck work, though bone-in adds the most body. A weekend project that reheats like a dream.