Preheat oven to 375 degrees with a rack in the lower third.

Arrange 5 pounds bone-in short ribs on its butcher paper or a sheet pan and season on all sides with 3 tablespoons salt and lots and lots of freshly ground black pepper. For max flavor, do this an hour or up to 2 days in advance.

Place ½ cup hazelnuts on a sheet pan and transfer to the oven. Roast until nuts are golden, about 8-9 minutes and transfer to a kitchen towel. Wrap and rub the nuts together to remove the skins. Very lightly chop the nuts, keeping the pieces large.

Peel and quarter 1 large onion.

Separate 1 head garlic into individual cloves (no need to peel) and wrap them in a double-layered piece of cheesecloth, along with 6 sprigs thyme. Tie with a piece of kitchen string to enclose.

Clean and halve ½ pound cremini mushrooms. Clean the remaining ¼ pound mushrooms and refrigerate until serving.

Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Add the short ribs, onion, 1 ounce dried mushrooms, and bouquet garni to a large Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. Measure 1 ½ cups from one (750-ml) bottle dry sherry and set aside for later. Add the remaining sherry from the bottle to the pot, along with 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth and 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce. Nestle the short ribs into as even a layer as possible and ensure the bouquet garni is submerged. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, and transfer to the oven.

After 2 hours, remove the pot, give a turn to the ribs, and braise until the meat has fallen off the bone and pulls apart very easily with two forks, basting and flipping the short rib pieces after 2 hours, about 3 ¼ to 4 hours total.

At the 2 hour mark, move the bouquet garni from one side of the pot to the other, ensuring that it remains beneath the liquid level. Take a peek under the lid after 1 hour to make sure the pot is gently simmering away; adjust oven temperature up or down by 25 degrees if necessary. If the pot is ever dry, add 1 cup additional chicken broth.

Remove the pot from the oven and increase temperature to 450 degrees.

At this point, you can let the contents of the pot cool, and then transfer to the refrigerator overnight or up to 3 days in advance. Remove the hardened fat that’ll be sitting on the surface and bring up to a simmer on the stovetop before proceeding.

Alternatively, dip the pot away from you so the liquid collects on the opposite side, and skim the fat from the top of the braising liquid with a spoon.

Add the reserved 1 ½ cups sherry to the pot, along with the halved mushrooms, dipping them under the surface of the braising liquid. Remove the bouquet garni, pressing against a spoon or the side of the pot to expel all the goodness, and discard.

If the meat has fallen off the bones, you can discard the bones to give more room to the ribs to get roasty. Nestle the ribs into an even layer and return pot to the oven, uncovered.

Roast, basting the meat every 10-15 minutes until braising jus is reduced to just a few tablespoons, about 50-70 minutes.

While the meat cooks, prep the polenta, parsley-mushroom salad, and mustardy creme-fraiche.

Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a medium pot and stream 1 ½ cups polenta into the center, whisking continuously. Season generously with salt and let cook over medium-low heat, covered, whisking frequently, until polenta is tender.

Cube 5 tablespoons butter and add to the pot, stirring until melted. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm on the stove, covered.

Slice the reserved ¼ pound mushrooms as thinly as possible and add to a medium bowl. Pick the leaves from 1 bunch parsley and add to the bowl. Add the hazelnuts.

Just before serving, dress generously with sherry vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Mix ¼ cup dijon with ¼ cup creme fraiche. Mix to combine and season with salt and pepper.

Plate up portions of polenta and top with ribs, breaking the meat into big pieces and seasoning with flaky salt. Dollop on some mustardy creme fraiche, top with the parsley-mushroom salad, and eat!