Oxtail Stew

Sunday dinner this week was made from a few odds and ends we had in the freezer. It was cold and miserable outside, and my partner had been out walking in the woods, so a hot, substantial stew seemed right. This can easily be made in a pressure cooker; I would expect the cooking time to drop from about four hours to roughly one.

This recipe is largely based on improvisation and should be treated as a set of guidelines rather than an exact formula. I served the stew with mashed potatoes, as I often do with this kind of food.

Oxtail stew

Ingredients – serves 4

• Mashed potatoes for serving
• 1.5 kg oxtail
• A generous splash of red wine, about 2–3 glasses
• 1 litre good beef stock or broth
• 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
• 3 large carrots, sliced
• 4 yellow onions, cut into strips
• 1 leek, cut into strips
• 4 bay leaves
• A little oil for frying
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Brown the meat in a large pot. Work in batches if your pot is not large enough; you want the meat to fry, not boil.
2. Add all the ingredients except the stock. Pour in the red wine and let it reduce for four to five minutes.
3. Add the stock and simmer gently for at least four hours.
4. Remove the meat, pick it from the bones and discard most of the connective tissue. Leave a little fat; that is where much of the flavour is.
5. Reduce the sauce until it reaches the consistency you want, but keep an eye on it—it can go from perfect to tar surprisingly quickly.
6. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy.