Love your freezer. Love your pantry.

Lentil and Short Rib Ragù w/ Parmesan Grits

We’re in the last cold snap of winter here in Austin, Texas. I am also broke.

Cold and rainy weather means early cuts and canceled shifts for those of us working in the service industry. When I ended up with a couple of unexpectedly free days, I wanted to make something cozy, comforting, creative, and cheap. 

This is a tribute to the frequently forgotten strength of our freezer and our pantry. They hold so much, yet are so under appreciated for all that they do. The days of overlooking you, dear Freezer, dear Pantry, in favor of 1st Wok delivery and the Popeyes drive-through are over… for now… until summer comes around and I want to eat tacos exclusively… the kind where the grease lazily drips down your wrist, the salsa makes you sweat even more than you already are, the salt clings to your tongue only to be washed away by a perfectly cold and sweet Cidral. 

Wow, I do digress. 

I have an array of quart containers in my freezer and various bags of beans and grains from the start of the pandemic. This was the perfect opportunity to work through some of them. The kind of food born from limitation is so exciting to me as a cook. The resulting Lentil and Short Rib Ragù w/ Parmesan Grits really made me smile. 

I started by soaking some regular green lentils and defrosting a container of short rib braising jus from a Valentine’s Day special at the restaurant last year. I sauteed onions, carrots, and celery in butter and then caramelized some tomato paste in with that. I added the jus, the lentils, and some water and let the ragu simmer on low for about an hour, stirring from time to time. I added just a splash of red wine vinegar at the end. I cooked the grits to the package instructions and stirred in some parmesan and butter when they were done. With a celery leaf garnish and some pretty blue bowls gifted to me by my dear friend Sam, this dish tasted fancy AF. Since I used stone ground grits and didn’t cook the lentils to death, the dish retained a nice texture. Little bits of short rib meat added a beautiful decadence. This dish was creamy, warming, and rich without being too heavy and paired beautifully with a budget red wine, a couple hours of Love is Blind, and my beautiful girlfriend.