Food & Drink I
t’s that time of year when the wind is blowing the leaves around, the rain is coming in sideways and the dark afternoons seem to start not long after the dark mornings have not quite lit up. The time of year when we want to come home to a comforting slow- cooked stew of oxtail – dark, rich and meaty, served with creamy mash and a green vegetable. It’s perfect after a dog walk in the cold; then winters don’t seem too bad after all. We cook oxtail for as long as we can – let’s face it,
that tail has worked hard all its life swishing flies away and is full of long connective tissue which needs slow cooking to transform it into a tender and delicious supper. We will put this dish in the falling heat of our woodfired ovens - however, you can do it in a regular oven or Aga too. We left it overnight once in the wood- fired oven for 12 hours but completely forgot about it and came back after 36 hours when we realised we hadn’t eaten it for supper as expected. I would say we had been busy but once the oven door is shut, much like Aga cooking, there are no smells so it’s easy to for- get what you’ve put in there.... As the oven was gently falling in temperature, no damage was done and the oxtail was the best ever – it completely fell off the bone and was incredibly succulent. Oxtail is also a great meal for this time of year
when you can just put it in the oven, go to whichever Christmas parties and festivities you’ve been invited to and come back to a meal you don’t have to think about. Also good for making in advance and reheating when needed – Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, those days between Christmas and January... If you can’t get hold of an oxtail, use the same
recipe for lamb shanks, beef cheeks, shoulder of lamb, braising steak – all those traditional cuts that are so good for slow cooking. If you have any left, the de-boned oxtail can be made into a fantastic cottage pie – that’s if you have any left of course.
Alternatives
Use LAMB SHANKS instead of oxtail.
Also LAMB SHOULDER cut in half works really well.
Try BEEF CHEEKS or PORK CHEEKS if you can get hold of them – you may have to ask the butchers to get them for you.
POTATO mash for the mashed potato or ROAST PUMPKIN.
red wine. Substitute SWEET
BRAISING STEAK is also good – use lots of onions and a dark beer instead of the
Written by David & Holly Jones
manafromdevon.com Tel.01803 752943
Serves 4-6Overnight Oxtail Stew
•1kg oxtail, chopped into 5cm pieces •4tbsp sunflower or olive oil •50g plain flour •Plenty of salt and pepper •120g of each chopped carrots, celery and leeks or onions
•½ tin chopped tomatoes •1 large glass red wine or dark beer – about 180ml
•Chicken stock – about 300 ml •1tbsp thyme leaves •Peel from 1 orange •1 cinnamon stick
Method 1. Heat the oven to 150C/Gas 3. We cook this overnight in our woodfired oven using just retained heat and you could also do it the cool oven of an Aga. 2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and brown the pieces of oxtail all over. 3. Toss the browned oxtail pieces in the plain flour and plenty of salt and pepper. 4. Put the vegetables in the base of a large casserole dish along with the thyme leaves, orange peel and cinnamon stick. 5. Put the floured and seasoned oxtail on top of the vegetables and carefully add the tomatoes, wine and stock so it goes into the casserole dish and not all over the sides. 6. Put the lid on tightly and put the pan in the oven for as long as possible – at least 4 hours and ideally overnight. If you are leaving the dish in overnight, reduce the heat to about 110C and check that the liquids haven’t evaporated before you go to bed. 7. Come back after at least 4 hours when the meat should be completely tender and falling off the bone with tender vegetables and a rich dark gravy. 8. Serve with creamy mashed potatoes and a green vegetable such as kale, Savoy cabbage or sprouts.
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