This wonderfully simple stew lends itself perfectly to cooking on my ESSE 1000 T. The Instant heat from contemporary induction hob means I can brown off the meat effortlessly and quickly. While the gentle consistent heat of the top oven is just the thing for a long slow cook, the meat just falls off the bone. If you can’t get hold of Oxtail, you can do the same thing with pieces of shin of beef on the bone.
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg oxtail, cut into pieces (ask your butcher to do this)
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or beef dripping
- 2 onions, halved and finely sliced
- 2 small celery sticks, trimmed and thinly sliced
- A bunch of medium carrots – about 6 – 8
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 a star anise bashed
- 6 juniper berries, lightly bashed
- 3 bay leaves
- 6 thyme sprigs
- 500ml of dark beer
- 500ml (17fl oz) good-quality beef stock
- 1 Tbls of corn flour
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 160°C / ESSE dial guide MODERATE
- Season the oxtail all over with salt and pepper. Heat the oil or dripping in a large heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the oxtail pieces and cook, turning regularly, for about 8–10 minutes, until they have a deep colour and are starting to crisp.
- Remove the oxtail from the pan and set aside. Add the onions, celery, garlic, anise, bay leaves, juniper, and thyme sprigs to the pan and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes, until the onions are soft.
- Place the oxtail pieces into a heavy cast iron pan with a lid, arranging them in a tight, single layer. Add the vegetables and pour over the beer and the stock so that the liquid just about covers the oxtail and bring it up to a simmer. Place a lid on the pan and place in the middle of the oven to cook gently for 3–4 hours, or until the oxtail meat falls off the bone. If at any point the pan looks a bit dry, add a dash of water or more stock to cover the meat.
- Remove the oxtail pieces from the pan and allow them to cool a little. Use a large spoon to skim off the excess fat from the surface of the sauce. Combine the cornflour with a splash of water, mix well then stir into the stew. Turn up the heat and bring the sauce to a simmer, it should thicken a little. Adjust the seasoning. Return the oxtail to the sauce, either in whole pieces or flaked off the bone and reheat gently.
- Serve with mashed or jacket potatoes, soft polenta or a just a slice or two of good crusty buttered bread.
Recipe supplied by Gill Meller. Gill is a chef, award-winning food writer, food stylist and cookery teacher, and was one of the first chefs to produce seasonal recipes for ESSE, working with ESSE cookers in his summer house since 2006. Gill’s recipes highlight how an ESSE transfers an unrivalled consistent and even heat to the dishes. For further information about ESSE’ partnership with Gill read on here.
