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Posts Tagged ‘Beef’

Bavette Steak with Black Lime & Maple Butter

Posted in Barbecue, Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 27 October 2022| Leave a Comment »

A delicious steak recipe from Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage. Ixta fries the steak in a pan over a high heat, we used a barbecue – fabulous flavours either way. You will need to grind about 3 black limes to get enough for the marinade and the butter.

Wine Suggestion: Thanks to our friends Tim & Mick, who’ve been travelling recently, we had an excellent Öküzgözü from Turkey which was regal, refined, and a delightful surprise. We wish we could remember the name of the winery as we forgot to take a picture and the bottle recycling was done the next day before we remembered! Full of black cherry, raspberry, and dark mulberry flavours; this was complex and had layers of dark chocolate, licorice, leather, tobacco, cloves, and something slightly herbal and minty, but we couldn’t put our finger on what.

Bavette steak with black lime & maple butter – serves 4

  • 500g bavette steak, cut into 3 equal pieces
  • 300g ripe tomatoes
  • ½ red onion
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

FOR THE MARINADE:

  • 1 tsp fine salt
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Urfa chili flakes (we used a mixture of smoked paprika and aleppo pepper)
  • 1½ tsp ground black lime
  • about 50 twists of black pepper

FOR THE SOY AND MAPLE BUTTER:

  • 40g ghee or unsalted butter
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
  • 2½ tsp maple syrup
  • ½ a small clove of garlic, finely grated
  • ¾ tsp ground black lime
  • ¾ tsp Urfa chilli flakes (see above)

Pat the steak dry and put into a large bowl. Add all the marinade ingredients and rub into the steaks. Leave aside for 10 minutes or up to 1 hour (you can do this further ahead and leave in the fridge but make sure you bring them back to room temperature before cooking).

Get your barbecue very hot, then sear the steaks for 2 minutes on each side, you want them dark brown on the outside but rare in the middle. Transfer to a warm plate and rest for 8 minutes, turning over halfway.

While the steaks are resting, slice the tomatoes and onions and arrange on a platter. Sprinkle with ½ tsp flaked salt.

Melt the ghee in a small saucepan over a medium heat. When it is melted and hot, remove from the heat and stir in the soy sauce, maple syrup, garlic, black lime and chilli flakes.

Slice the bavette against the grain and arrange over the onions and tomatoes. Sprinkle with some sea salt, then spoon over the soy and maple butter and serve with the lemon wedges on the side.

(Original recipe from Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage, Ebury Press, 2022.)

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Beef Stroganoff

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 2 July 2022| Leave a Comment »

Jules’ Mum makes this all the time and serves it with home-made chips. We almost always cook it when we’re camping in France as it all cooks in the one pan and you can easily find all the ingredients. This one is different from our usual with the addition of paprika and dill, it’s very nice served with some plain white rice.

Wine Suggestion: We think this works best with a rich, full-bodied red. For us a treat from the ancient wine world, though a relatively young winery run by some young, passionate Syrians, the Bargylus, Grand Vin de Syrie 2014. Something to be celebrated due to the sheer class of this Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend, and mourned due to all the problems now in this part of the world. Superbly integrated tannins and layered fruit and spice; almost hedonistic in it’s velvetiness. You can taste some heat, but in a very good way with no evidence of alcohol. Mature but maintaining it’s freshness. We just wish this was more easily available for everyone to try.

Beef stroganoff – serves 4

  • 30g butter
  • 600g beef rump steak, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 clove of garlic, crushed
  • 1 tsp sweet paprika
  • 400g chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 2 tbsp red wine
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 300g double cream
  • 1 tbsp coarsely chopped dill, plus a bit extra to garnish

Season the meat with salt and pepper.

Heat 15g of butter in a large frying pan over a high heat and lightly brown the meat. Do this in batches and don’t overcrowd the pan, remove each batch to a plate and set aside.

Heat another 15g of butter in the same pan and add the onion and garlic. Cook over a gentle heat for about 4 minutes, or until softened. Add the paprika, mushrooms and tomato purée and cook for another few minutes, stirring.

Return the meat to the pan with any juices from the plate. Add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a simmer. Cover with a lid and simmer gently for 5-7 minute or until the meat is tender. Add the cream and dill and cook, stirring constantly, until heated through. We turn the heat off the second the sauce begins to simmer, don’t take it any further in case the cream splits. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with steamed rice. Garnish with a little more chopped dill.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein at Home, BBC Books, 2021.)

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Beef with Mangetout & Cashews

Posted in Asian, Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , on 28 February 2022| Leave a Comment »

Chinese New Year was on a Tuesday this year and we had to squeeze our Chinese food in between homework, swimming lessons etc. If that is you, then this recipe is for you. As ever you need to prep everything before you start cooking. We served with rice but noodles would be good too.

Beef with mangetout & cashews – serves 4

  • 50g unsalted cashews
  • 1 tsp cornflour
  • 1 ½ tbsp low-salt soy sauce
  • 4 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 280g rump steak, thinly sliced
  • a thumb-sized piece of ginger, cut into matchsticks
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 200g mangetout, halved

Toast the cashews in a dry wok or frying pan, until browned, then set aside.

Mix the cornflour and soy sauce together to make a paste, then add the oyster sauce, rice vinegar and honey.

Heat your wok until very hot. Add the oil and swirl around to cover the base and sides. Use tongs to place the steak pieces into the wok in a single layer. Cook, without turning for 30 seconds – 1 minute, or until a dark crust starts to form. Add the ginger and garlic and toss everything together, then add the mangetout and the sauce. Cook for another 30 seconds – 1 minute or until the beef is just cooked through and the sauce is glossy. Sprinkle over the cashews and serve.

(Original recipe from BBC Good Food)

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Braised Beef Short Ribs with Butter Beans & Figs

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 30 December 2021| Leave a Comment »

Your butcher should be able to get you beef short ribs if you ask, and the trick is slow-cooking. All that fat will ensure they become meltingly tender and the meat will literally fall off the bones. This dish takes a while to cook but there’s not much effort required and the result is worth it.

Wine Suggestion: This dish requires a serious, powerful red with a good structure. Tonight we had a youthful 3 year old Chateau Puygueraud from the Côtes de Francs, Bordeaux. A merlot, cabernet franc, malbec blend it was appropriate but all judged it too young and a little forceful. However a Domaine des Roches Neuves ‘Marginale’, Saumur-Champigny from 2015 brought by our friends proved to be the wine match we were looking for. Cabernet Franc from the Loire this cuvée showed the class of being the best selection of the best vineyards in a powerful, great vintage. All parts integrated but still in it’s infancy. A good match tonight, and we are all sad we don’t have any more in our cellars to see this in 10 years time too.

Braised beef short ribs with butter beans & figs – serves 4

  • 2 onions, roughy chopped
  • 6 cloves of garlic, peeled
  • 4cm piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 2 green chillies, roughly chopped, no need to discard the seeds
  • 6 beef short ribs (about 1.5kg),trim off any big pieces of fat at the edges but don’t worry about being too particular with the rest, it all renders down into the rich sauce
  • 60ml olive oil
  • 4 whole star anise
  • 10 cardamom pods, roughly bashed open with a pestle and mortar
  • 1½ tbsp tomato purée
  • 2 tsp ground allspice
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 5-6 large plum tomatoes, two-thirds roughly chopped and the rest roughly grated and skin discarded
  • 100g soft dried figs, roughly chopped into 1½ cm pieces
  • 700g jar butter beans, drained
  • 30g chives, very finely chopped
  • 1½ tbsp lemon juice
  • 300g regular spinach, discard the stems and roughly tear the leaves

Heat the oven to 165C fan.

Put the onions, garlic, ginger and chillies into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.

Dry the short ribs with kitchen paper and season with salt and pepper. Put 2 tbsp of oil into a large ovenproof saucepan and turn the heat to medium-high. Fry the ribs in batches until well coloured on all sides, then remove and set aside.

Add the onion mixture to the pan along with the star anise and cardamom, and cook for 5 minutes to soften, stirring now and then. Add the tomato purée, ground spices, chopped tomatoes (don’t add the grated ones yet), 1½ tsp of salt and plenty of black pepper and cook for another 4 minutes or until the tomatoes start to soften.

Add the short ribs and 1.1 litres of water, bring to the boil, then cover and put into the oven for 3 hours, stirring a few times.

Add the figs and cook for another half hour, or until softened. The meat should now be very tender.

Meanwhile, put the butterbeans into a saucepan with a pinch of salt and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 15 minutes, then drain. Stir in the chives, 2 tbsp of oil, the lemon juice and plenty of pepper.

When the beef is ready, take the ribs from the pan and pull the meat off the bones. Discard the bones and set the beef aside.

Heat the sauce and stir in the spinach, it should wilt in a few minutes, then add the grated tomato and remove from the heat.

Spoon the sauce over a large platter and top with beans and beef.

(Original recipe from OTK Shelf Love by Noor Murad & Yotam Ottolenghi, Ebury Press, 2021.)

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Pot-roast Beef

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , on 14 November 2021| Leave a Comment »

We don’t cook roast beef too often, because we’re lucky enough to have good friends who do! However we liked the look of this one as it all cooks in one pot and so thought we’d give it a go. It’s a very forgiving dish to cook – easy to get right and with loads of veg cooked in the same dish. Some greens on the side is all you need.

Wine Suggestion: A good, honest Bordeaux blend is what works here. For us it was the Chateau Monconseil Gazin from Blaye which always over-delivers in panache and lovely fruit for the value pricing.

Pot-roast beef – serves 4

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 12 shallots, peeled
  • 2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
  • 2 large carrots, cut into chunks
  • 400g baby potatoes, halved
  • 2 tsp mustard powder
  • 1kg silverside or beef topside, extra fat removed
  • 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 sprig of thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 150ml red wine
  • 600ml beef stock
  • 2 tsp butter
  • 2 tsp plain flour
  • 1-2 tsp redcurrant jelly

Preheat the oven to 160C/Fan 140C/Gas 3.

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish with a lid. Add the shallots, celery, carrots and potatoes. Cook over a high heat until everything is starting to brown, then remove from the dish with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Mix the mustard powder with salt and pepper, then use this to dust the beef. Add the beef to the casserole and brown on all sides, you can add a little more oil if needed.

Arrange the browned vegetables around the beef, then add the garlic, thyme and bay leaves. Pour in the wine and bring to the boil and allow to bubble for a few minutes, then add the stock and bring to the boil again.

Cover the dish with the lid and place in the oven to 2 hours, turning the beef over halfway through. Remove the beef from the oven and check that it’s tender, then transfer the beef and vegetables to a warm platter and cover loosely with foil.

Knead the butter and flour together to make a paste, then whisk this into the cooking liquid, a little at a time, until thickened. Taste for seasoning, then stir in the redcurrant jelly, to taste. Serve the gravy with the meat and vegetables.

(Original recipe from The Hairy Bikers’ One Pot Wonders by Si King & Dave Myers, Seven Dials 2019.)

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Alsatian Beef, Lamb and Pork Stew

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, Lamb, Pork, Potato, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on 25 October 2021| Leave a Comment »

We were initially attracted to this as it is marinated in Riesling, a favoured grape in our house, plus the unusual combination of three meats plus bacon. Classically country French in style, this has no airs or graces in appearance, but is jam packed full of flavour and richness. It serves loads of people and we’d suggest having a side of greens. Also, like many other long cooked stews this tastes great the following day and freezes well.

Wine Suggestion: Courtesy of a very generous friend who came to dinner, we were treated to a delightful comparison of two old bottles of Rene Rostaing’s Côte Rôtie: the La Landonne and Côte Blonde. Both an excellent match to the dish and lovely wines. The Côte Blond was the favoured bottle, but both showed very well. We’d recommend searching for a good Syrah if something of this calibre doesn’t come to hand. Thanks David for these bottles!

Alsatian beef, lamb and pork stew – serves 8-10

  • 750g boneless pork belly, cut into 4cm cubes
  • 750g boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 4cm cubes
  • 750g chuck steak, cut into 4cm cubes
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 250g carrots, sliced
  • 2 leeks, cut in half lengthways, washed and sliced
  • 500ml Sylvaner or Riesling white wine
  • 2 kg potatoes, sliced into 5mm thick rounds
  • 100g unsmoked bacon, cut into 1cm pieces
  • 250ml beef stock
  • a handful of flatleaf parsley, roughly chopped, to garnish

Place all of the meat (but not the bacon), onions, carrots and leeks in a large non-metallic bowl and pour over the wine. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight.

Heat the oven to 190C/Fan 170C.

Arrange a quarter of the sliced potatoes over the base of a very large casserole dish.

Drain the meat and veg in a colander over a bowl and reserve the liquid.

Scatter some veg over the potatoes, then add som bacon pieces and chunks of meat. Season with salt and black pepper, then add another layer of potato, more veg, bacon, meat and seasoning. Keep layering like this and finsih with a final layer of potatoes. Don’t be tempted to hold back on the salt as the dish needs liberal seasoning (about 2tsp in total).

Pour over the reserved marinade juices and beef stock, then cover the casserole with a tight lid and put in the oven.

Bake for about 3 hours or until the meat is tender. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Secret France, BBC Books, 2019.)

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Bulgogi Cheese Steak Sandwich

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 31 January 2021| 3 Comments »

You can’t beat a steak sandwich and this one is super spicy and extra tasty! It certainly brightened up an otherwise uneventful Saturday for us. 

Bulgogi cheese steak sandwich – serves 4

  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • 1 clove of garlic, grated
  • 1 tsp light brown soft sugar
  • 2 tbsp gochujang paste
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
  • ½ pear, peeled and cubed
  • 2 sirloin steaks, trimmed of fat and very finely sliced (this is easier if you freeze for 20 minute before slicing)
  • 1 baguette, cut into 4
  • mild cheddar cheese
  • 2 scallions, finely chopped
  • sesame seeds

Mix the ginger, garlic, sugar, gochujang, soy sauce, sesame oil and rice vinegar together in a large bowl, then mash in the pear. Add the steak and leave to marinate for an hour. 

Halve the pieces of baguettte and add a layer of cheese. 

Heat a wok over a high heat. Add the beef and marinade, bring to a simmer and stir until the meat is cooked through. 

Spoon the meat into the baguettes and sprinkle with scallions and sesame seeds. 

(Original recipe from Lulu Grimes and Anna Glover in Olive Magazine, January 2016.)

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Korean Spicy Beef & Vegetable Stew

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 6 January 2021| Leave a Comment »

We ate this in those funny days between Christmas and New Year when you’re fed up eating but still feel you need to make the most of the time you have to cook. We’d had enough of leftovers and were craving spicy food, like this spicy beef stew, which is more like a soup, but with lots of sustenance. The recipe is from Our Korean Kitchen by Jordan Bourke & Rejina Pyo, probably our most used book this year. Serve with some sticky rice.

Spicy beef & vegetable stew – serves 4

  • 400g beef brisket
  • 1 onion, quartered
  • 10 cloves of garlic, 6 left whole and 4 crushed
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 150g shitake mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 leek, halved and thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp roasted sesame seed oil
  • 3 tbsp gochugaru red pepper powder
  • 1½ tsp sea salt
  • 10 scallions, halved lengthways, then cut into 6cm strips
  • cooked rice, to serve

Put the brisket into a large pot and cover with 3 litres of water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and add the onion and 6 whole garlic cloves. Simmer for 2 hours with the lid off, remove any scum that comes to the top and add water as needed to ensure the beef is submerged.

Transfer the brisket to a plate and set aside to cool. Strain the stock through a sieve into a jug, and discard the flavouring ingredients. When the brisket is cool enough to handle, tear it into bite-sized pieces, discarding any fat.

In the same pan, heat the vegetable oil over a medium heat, then add the mushrooms and leek and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the beef, soy sauce, crushed garlic, sesame seed oil and gochugaru powder. Turn up the heat and fry for a couple of minutes until aromatic. Pour 1.3 litres of the beef stock into the pan (freeze the rest for another dish). Add the salt and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat a  bit and add the scallions. Simmer for 3 minutes, then serve in bowls with some rice if you like.

(Original recipe from Our Korean Kitchen by Jordan Bourke and Rejina Pyo, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2015.)

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Korean Beef & Vegetable Stew

Posted in Asian, Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 11 October 2020| Leave a Comment »

Our Korean Kitchen by Jordan Bourke and Rejina Pyo has been on our bookshelves for ages. We take it down occasionally and remind ourselves that we should really go and get some Korean ingredients. At last we have bought gochujang chilli paste, gochugaru red pepper powder and a big bottle of roasted sesame seed oil, so we can get cooking. This beef dish could not be simpler and the flavours are fab.

Wine Suggestion: as we’re pretty new to Korean flavours we had no idea what to match and just opened what our guests had brought along; the Olianas Cannonau (Grenache) from Sardinia. A lovely wine which was both subtle and elegant, and heady with spice and warm sunshine; very well balanced. Plus it was a delight with the Bulgogi stew.

Korean Beef & Vegetable Stew – bulgogi jeongol – serves 4 to 6

  • 1 quantity marinated beef, see below
  • 100g rice noodles
  • 1 litre good quality beef stock
  • 1 tbsp gochujang chill paste
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp roasted sesame seed oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • ½ an onion, finely sliced
  • ½ a red pepper, sliced into thin strips
  • ½ a courgette, halved lengthways and sliced into thin strips
  • 1 large carrot, halved lengthways and sliced into thin strips
  • 50g enoki or shitake mushrooms
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

FOR THE MARINATED BEEF:

  • 450g beef sirloin, cut into very thin bite-size pieces
  • 1 Asian or 2 regular pears, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
  • ¼ onion, roughly chopped
  • 1cm piece of ginger, roughly chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 2½ tbsp soy sauce
  • 1½ tbsp honey
  • 1½ tbsp roasted sesame seed oil
  • ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Start by marinading the beef. Put all of the ingredients, except the beef, into a food processor and whizz until smooth. Pour into a bowl then stir in the sliced beef. Cover and put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Soak the noodles in a bowl of water according to the instructions on the pack, about 30 minutes.

Put the beef stock, gochujang paste, soy sauce, sesame seed oil and garlic into a pan and bring to the boil.

Meanwhile, arrange the onion, red pepper, courgette, carrot, mushrooms, and most of the scallions in a pile around the edge of a large pot with a lid, and put the raw marinated bulgogi in the middle. Drain the noodles and tuck these in beside the beef.

When the beef stock has come to a rolling boil, put the vegetable pan over a high heat and pour in the hot stock. Cover and bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until everything is cooked through.

Just before serving, mix it all together in the pan and sprinkle over the toasted sesame seeds and remaining scallions.

(Original recipe from Our Korean Kitchen by Jordan Bourke & Rejina Pyo, Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 2015.)

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Feather Blade Braised in Port

Posted in Beef, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 24 September 2020| 1 Comment »

Feather Blade Braised in Port

Feather blade is such a good value cut of meat and delicious when cooked low and slow. A great dish for the colder months. Serve with potato, onion & horseradish potatoes and some greens. You can make this in advance and reheat before serving.

Wine suggestion: As this is cooked with Port we’d suggest a dry and full-bodied red wine from Portugal if you can find it. As we’d used Quinta de la Rosa’s Ruby Port for this idish it was approriate to drink their Tinto

Feather Blade Braised in Port – serves 4

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 4 feather blade steaks (about 200g each)
  • 1 onion, halved
  • 4 cloves of garlic, bashed
  • 2 carrots, halved crossways
  • a bunch of thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 4 star anise
  • 6 white peppercorns
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 300ml port
  • 1.2 litres of beef stock
  • a little flour to thicken the sauce if you like

Preheat the oven to 140C/120 fan/gas 1.

Heat the oil in a large, ovenproof, casserole dish. Season the steaks with salt, then sear in the oil until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes. Do this in batches if you need so the pan isn’t overcrowded. Transfer to a plate.

Add the onion, garlic, carrots, leek, a small handful of the thyme, bay leaves, start anise and peppercorns and fry for 10-15 minutes or until lightly caramelised. Add the tomato purée and port and simmer for 15 minutes or until the port is reduced and syrupy. Add the beef stock and bing to a gentle simmer. Return the meat and any juices to the pan, then cover and cook in the oven for 3 hours.

Gently remove the steaks from the pan, then strain the sauce into a clean saucepan (discard the veg). Bring the sauce to a fast boil and reduced by about half. We thickened the sauce a little with some flour too but you don’t have to do this. Put the meat in the casserole dish to keep warm while you reduce the sauce. To serve, pour the reduced sauce over the meat in the casserole dish and cover with the lid. Bring to a simmer over a low heat, check the seasoning, then serve.

(Original recipe from Marcus Everyday by Marcus Wareing, HarperCollinsPublishers, 2019.)

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Spring Lamb Meatballs with Broad Beans & Courgettes

Posted in Food, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 23 July 2020| Leave a Comment »

Spring Lamb Meatballs with Broad Beans & Courgettes

Totally different flavours going on in this meatball recipe from Honey & Co at Home,  but deliciously tasty. Such a good use for broad beans and anything full of dill is always a hit with us.

Wine Suggestion: try to find a fresh Mediterranean inspired white with a bit of zip. Tonight a Carricante from Gulfi on the southern slopes of Mt Etna in Sicily; a mineral undertone, hints of herbs, fresh grapefruit and almonds. We could almost taste the sunshine.

Spring lamb meatballs with broad beans and courgettes – serves 4

FOR THE MEATBALLS:

  • 1 leek, trimmed and sliced
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 250g lamb mince
  • 250g beef mince
  • 1 tbsp of ground fenugreek
  • 1 tbsp of ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp table salt
  • a pinch of black pepper
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
  • about 10g of dill, chopped
  • about 10g of flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
  • ½ tsp baking powder

FOR THE COOKING LIQUID:

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large leek,  trimmed and roughly sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
  • 2 courgettes, diced
  • ½ tsp table salt
  • 200g broad beans (we used frozen broad beans)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • about 10g of dill, chopped
  • about 10g of flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.

Mix all of the meatball ingredients together in a large bowl. Hands are good for this but you might want to wear gloves to avoid yellow nails. Shape into ping-ball sized meatballs, you should get 12-14. Put the meatballs on a baking tray and bake for 12 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil for the cooking liquid in a large pot and sweat the leeks, garlic and courgettes for 5-6 minutes, then sprinkle with salt and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the broad beans, bay leaves and cinnamon stick, and sauté for another 5 minutes.

Tip in the seared meatballs with any juices from the tray. Add 500ml of water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat to low, add the chopped herbs and cover the pan. Simmer for 40 minutes, then serve.

(Original recipe from Honey & Co. At Home by Sarit Packer & Itamar Srulovich, Pavillion, 2018.)

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Hanger Steak with Shallots

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , on 21 March 2020| Leave a Comment »

Hanger Steak with Shallots

We adore this cut of beef but it’s not always easy to get in Irish butchers. Talk to your butcher in advance and tell them you want a piece of onglet or hanger steak – they should be able to order it for you, and it’s much cheaper than some other cuts.

We cut this across the grain and it’s meltingly tender so you can be brave and serve “blue” like we did here, but it also works well at your choice of doneness if you prefer.

Wine Suggestion: we think this combination of meltingly tender beef and the buttery shallots in red wine goes with Rhône reds – Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre et al; either as a blend or Syrah alone. Tonight we had one of those insider wines, a Côtes du Rhône labelled under Jean-Paul Daumen’s name. He’s the owner-winemaker at Domaine de la Vieille Julienne, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a superb domaine with an enviable reputation. The wines under his name are from a mix of vineyards from the estate and friends, all farmed organically and biodynamically by Jean-Paul and made with just as much care as his own domaine. The result … great value and a delicious pairing.

Hanger Steak with Shallots – L’onglet à l’échalote – serves 4

  • 60g unsalted butter
  • 800g onglet/hanger steak (you will probably get 2 long pieces)
  • 250g shallot, finely sliced
  • 1 thyme sprig
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 125ml red wine
  • 100ml beef stock
  • watercress, to garnish

As soon as you get home from the butchers put your steak into a dish and sprinkle generously with salt. Then put in the fridge until you need it but take it out of the fridge about an hour before you want to cook it.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Add a knob of the butter and when it starts to melt add your steak. You might have to cook it in batches depending on the size of your pan. A rough guide is to cook for about 2 minutes on each side for very rare steak or longer if you prefer it more well done. This is dependent on the size of the steak, so you should do the finger test on the meat and go with gut feel. Put the steak onto a warm plate, cover with foil and keep warm while it rests.

Melt half of the remaining butter in the same frying pan and add the shallots, thyme and bay leaf. Cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until softened. Add the red wine and the stock, turn the heat up to high and cook until the liquid has reduced by half. Season with salt and lots of black pepper, throw away the herbs. Pour the meat juices from the resting plate into the sauce and whisk in the remaining butter to make a thick, glossy sauce.

Slice the steak across the grain into thick slices and serve on top of the shallots with some watercress on the side.

(Original recipe from Rick Stein’s Secret France, BBC Books, 2019.)

To do the finger test for steak you compare the resistance of the cooking meat to pressing the ball of your palm with a finger from the other hand

  • Blue: an open palm, relaxed
  • Rare: thumb and your first, index finger touching
  • Medium Rare: thumb and second finger
  • Medium: thumb and third, ring finger
  • Well Done: thumb and fourth, little finger

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Thai Beef Salad

Posted in Asian, Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , on 5 December 2018| Leave a Comment »

Thai beef saladMid-week celebrations can be a bit tricky, especially when work and life are busy. This was Jules’ choice for birthday dinner on a Tuesday in November and we would recommend it for a mid-week birthday at any time of year.

Wine Suggestion: We opened something a bit special given the occassion, the Tyler Dierberg Block 5 Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara county in California. Despite the umami/savoury, hot/spicy, salty and sweet flavours of the salad this was an excellent match providing layers of excitement and flavour.

Thai Beef Salad – serves 4

  • 1-2 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 500g fillet steak

FOR THE DRESSING:

  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 cm piece of fresh ginger
  • 1 lemongrass stalk
  • 1 red chilli
  • 2 limes
  • 3 tbsp nam pla (fish sauce)
  • 2 tbsp caster sugar

FOR THE SALAD:

  • 3 shallots
  • large handful of Thai basil
  • large handful of coriander
  • large handful of mint

TO SERVE:

  • 5 tbsp roasted unsalted peanuts
    • Roast the peanuts on a baking tray for 8-10 minutes at 190ºC until golden, then tip into a bowl to cool.
  • 3 tbsp fried shallots (see below)
    • Finely slice the shallots and fry in a wok or frying pan, in 5mm to 1cm of oil, over a medium heat, until golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer onto kitchen paper to cool and crisp up.

To make the dressing: peel and crush the garlic and peel and finely grate the ginger, reserving the juice. Remove the outer leaf of the lemongrass stalk and trim the ends, leaving the tender middle section; very finely chop this. Halve, deseed and finely dice the chilli. Squeeze the juice from the the limes to give 4 tbsp.

Put the lime juice, nam pla and sugar in a large bowl and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the garlic, ginger and its juice, lemongrass and chilli and stir again.

For the salad: halve and very finely slice the shallots. Pick the herb leaves and leave whole.

Heat enough oil to cover the base of a heavy frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the steak and cook for 1-2 minutes per side, then remove and rest for 5 minutes.

Put the raw shallots and herbs into a large bowl. Finely slice the steak across the grain and add to the salad. Add half the dressing and toss to coat everything. Transfer to a serving dish and scatter with the peanuts and fried shallots. Serve the rest of the dressing on the side.

(Original recipe from Leiths How to Cook, Quadrille, 2014.)

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Beef Bourguignon

Posted in Beef, Food, tagged , , , , , , , on 26 October 2018| Leave a Comment »

Bouef Bourgignon

A classic dish for good reason. We’ve tried many versions over the years but always come back this simple recipe. Serve with mash and greens.

Despite the name, we prefer juicier reds for this dish and often veer toward the Rhone or similar. This time it was a Merlot from Chile and as long as the wine is decent you won’t spoil the dish; don’t throw in bad wine as you will notice this.

Wine Suggestion: A Northern Rhone Syrah by Jean-Michel Gerin brought by our guests was a very good match. This was followed by a Grapillon d’Or Gigondas, an equally good match.

Beef Bourguignon – serves 6

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 750g cubed braising or stewing steak
  • 3 tbsp seasoned flour
  • 9 shallots, peeled and halved
  • 3 garlic cloves, halved
  • 125g lardons/cubed pancetta
  • 75cl bottle red wine
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 1 tbsp tomato purée
  • 250g button mushrooms

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/Fan 160C.

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole with a lid. Toss the meat in the flour then cook in batches until well browned. Remove each batch with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add shallots, garlic and lardons/pancetta and cook for 5 minutes until golden brown. Return all the meat to the pot, pour in the wine and bring to the boil. Stir in the thyme, tomato purée and some seasoning.

Cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 1 hour. Add the mushrooms, cover, and return to the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the meat is tender.

(Original recipe by Ainsley Harriott in BBC Good Food Magazine, November 2001.)

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Italian Seared Beef

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, Italian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on 25 July 2018| Leave a Comment »

Italian seared beef

So this is a bit of a treat and yet has very few ingredients and takes very little time to prepare. Hail to that.

Wine Suggestion: fresher and bit more rustic than Bordeaux is Bergerac, into the Dordogne River to the east. The best vineyards are in the Pecharmant AC and have Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot as the dominant varieties. We found some unoaked wines on our last trip from Domaine des Costes, Cuvée Tradition which, while simple, had a joy and juiciness that perfectly complemented the beef, pesto and rocket.

Italian Seared Beef – serves 2

  • 1 tbsp pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan until golden
  • 250g rump steak
  • 2 heaped teaspoons pesto
  • 40g rocket
  • 15g Parmesan cheese

Put a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Cut the fat of the steak, finely chop the fat and put into the hot pan to crisp up. Cut the sinew off the rump and season with salt and black pepper. Put the steak between two sheets of greaseproof paper and bash with a rolling pin until it is an even thickness of about 1 cm. Scoop out the crispy fat and set aside, then sear the steak in the hot pan for 1 minute per side or until golden but still pink in the middle (as per photo). Remove the steak to a board to rest.

Spread the pesto over a serving plate. Thinly slice the steak at an angle and scatter over the plate. Pile the rocket on top, then scatter over the pine nuts and crispy fat (you don’t have to eat the fat if you would rather not –  we’ll have it!). Mix the resting juices with a tbsp of good olive oil and drizzle over. Shave the Parmesan over to serve.

(Original recipe from 5 Ingredients by Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2017.)

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Jamie’s Meltin’ Mustardy Beef

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 28 January 2018| 3 Comments »

Mustardy Beef

Another successful dish from Jamie Oliver’s ‘5 Ingredients’. Such a clever book with lots of simple dishes and bags of flavour. We served with creamy chive mash and buttered cabbage.

Wine Suggestion: We quite like to have richer, Southern French reds with casseroles, sometimes from the Rhône but this time we opened a Mas Amiel Pur Schist from Rousillon; another find hiding in the corner of the cellar. Rich, warm and at the same time elegant and sophisticated.

Meltin’ Mustardy Beef – serves 6

  • 900g beef shin (get your butcher to remove the bone but take it with you for extra flavour), diced into 5 cm chunks
  • 500g carrots, cut into 5 cm chunks
  • 2 onions, peeled, quartered and broken into petals
  • 120ml Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 heaped tsp wholegrain mustard

Heat your oven to 160C/325F/Gas 3.

Put a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Toss the beef with lots of black pepper and a good pinch of salt, then dry fry in the hot pan with the bone for about 8 minutes or until nicely browned.

Heat a shallow casserole pan over a high heat. Add the carrots with a tbsp of olive oil and cook for a couple of minutes before adding the onions and continue to cook until starting to soften and colour a bit. Add the browned meat, then stir in the Worcestershire sauce and mustard plus 800ml of boiling water from the kettle.

Cover the casserole and cook in the oven for 4 hours or until super tender. Loosen with a splash of water if necessary. Season to taste and serve with mash and greens.

(Original recipe from ‘5 Ingredients’ by Jamie Oliver, Penguin, 2017.)

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Epic Rib-Eye Steak

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 5 January 2018| 2 Comments »

Epic rib-eye steak

New Year’s eve is a night we treasure to eat nice food and open a good bottle of wine; just the two of us (the third still flakes out around 7pm). This year we are glad that Jamie Oliver is back on song with his new book “5 Ingredients”. This was delicious, luxurious and yes –  very few ingredients.

Wine suggestion: from our cellar came a bottle of the Chateau Rayas “Pignan” 2005 which while 12 years old was beautifully youthful, smooth, complex and deep. A 100% grenache from a very particular vineyard this is a remarkable wine that we’re glad to have shared together to begin 2018.

Epic Rib-Eye Steak – serves 4

  • 600g piece of rib-eye steak (ideally about 5 cm thick), fat removed
  • 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves stripped
  • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
  • 350g mixed mushrooms, tear up any larger ones into bite size chunks
  • 1 x 660g jar of white beans
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Place a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Rub the steak all over with a little olive oil, a pinch of salt and some black pepper, then sear on all sides for 10 minutes in total. You’re looking for a nice dark brown on the outside and medium rare in the middle – of course keep cooking if you prefer it more cooked than this. When done, remove to a warm plate and cover with tin foil.

Turn the heat under the pan down to medium. Add the rosemary leaves and crisp up for 30 seconds, then add the garlic and mushrooms with a splash of oil if needed and cook for 8 minutes or until golden.

Pour in the beans and their juice, add the red wine vinegar and simmer for 5 minutes, then season to taste. Sit the steak on top and pour over any juices from the plate. Slice the steak at the table and serve with with a drizzle of your best olive oil.

(Original recipe from 5 Ingredients by Jamie Oliver, Michael Joseph, 2017.)

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Chilli with an amazing smoked paprika butter

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , on 3 January 2018| 2 Comments »

Chilli with Amazing Smoked Paprika Butter

The base recipe for this chilli is nothing unusual but it becomes much more special with the addition of a delicious smoked paprika butter stirred through at the end. It’s definitely our chilli of the moment! Serve with your choice of the usual chilli accompaniments – baked potatoes/rice, grated cheese, avocado, sour cream, tortilla chips….

Wine Suggestion: choice one – a nice, clean lager like Peroni or the Harviestoun Schiehallion, or choice two – a juicy red wine like the Cline Lodi Zinfandel with brambly fruit and soft, spicy tannins.

Chilli minced beef with smoked paprika butter – serves 6

  • 2 tbsp olive oil or garlic oil (if you have it)
  • 2 onions, thickly sliced
  • 2 celery sticks, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1kg beef mince
  • 200ml red wine
  • 2 x 400g tins of kidney beans
  • 1 x 400g tin of plum tomatoes
  • 1 red chilli, finely chopped (or substitute 2 tsp chilli powder)
  • 1 tsp crushed cumin seeds
  • 500ml strong beef stock
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 4 sprigs of thyme
  • 2 sprigs of rosemary
  • large handful of chopped coriander, plus extra to serve
  • lime wedges, to serve

FOR THE SMOKED PAPRIKA BUTTER

  • 75g soft butter
  • 1½ tsp smoked paprika
  • finely grated zest of 1 lime and juice of ½ lime
  • ½ tsp of sea salt

Heat a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the oil and cook the onions, celery and garlic over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until softened. Turn up the heat, stir in the mince and fry until browned, breaking it up as you go with a wooden spoon.

Add the red wine and scrape any crusty bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring to the boil and allow the wine to reduce by half.

Stir in the beans, tomatoes, chilli, cumin, stock, bay leaves, thyme and rosemary. Season with a teaspoon of sea salt and some black pepper. Bring to a simmer, then cover with a lid and cook for at least an hour, stirring now and then. You can add a cup of water if it starts to become too thick. Likewise, if it’s not thick enough, you can simmer without the lid for the last 10 to 15 minutes.

Make the smoked paprika butter by beating the butter together with the smoked paprika, lime zest, lime juice and salt.

Remove the herb sprigs form the chilli then stir through the coriander and the flavoured butter, then allow to sit for 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning and serve with coriander and lime wedges over the top.

(Original recipe from Marcus at Home by Marcus Waring, HarperCollins, 2016.)

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Beef Bourguignon Pie

Posted in Beef, Food, Party Food, tagged , , , , , , , , on 10 November 2017| 2 Comments »

Beef Bourguignon Pie whole

Beef Bourguignon Pie whole

One of Jules’ classic dishes that combines Beef Bourguignon with a mash potato top. Old-fashioned in many ways but a great crowd pleaser and you can prep it all in advance. Some veg on the side is all you need for a hearty dinner.

A red Burgundy is not necessary for cooking, rather look for a juicy and easy red. Make sure it is decent though as it will still contribute to the flavours and quality of the dish. Having trialled relatively expensive Burgundy (to really find out!) in dishes like this though, we think it makes the dish unnecessarily expensive without adding anything extra over a decent, juicy, but cheaper red.

Wine Suggestion: If tempted to drink a red Burgundy with this dish, and want to impress, pick a fulsome appellation from the Cote d’Or if you can. Even if you pick a Bourgogne rouge make sure it has class and character as very easy, commercial examples are just a bit bland for the dish. This time we chose a northern Rhône, the J-M Gerin Côte Rôtie Champin de Seigneur which rivals good Burgundy for price but also matches it for aromatic thrill and velvety, earthy core with the same medium weight and great freshness.

Beef Bourguignon Cottage Pie – serves 6

FOR THE BOURGUIGNON BASE:

  • 1 tbsp sunflower oil/veg oil
  • 200g pack bacon lardons
  • 900g braising steak, cut into 3cm chunks
  • 225g button mushrooms
  • 225g button onions or small shallots, peeled
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tbsp demerara sugar
  • 600ml red wine
  • 400g tin beef consommé or 400ml of beef stock
  • 1 to 2 tbsp cornflour, loosened with 1-2 tbsp red wine or water

FOR THE MASH TOPPING:

  • 1.5 kg floury potatoes e.g. Maris Piper
  • 50g unsalted butter
  • 100ml milk

Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the bacon lardons over a high heat until well browned. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Season the beef, then fry in the bacon fat until coloured. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the cornflour and bacon, and bring to a simmer. Partly cover the pan with a lid and cook for 2-2½ hours or until the beef is tender.

When the beef is cooked, tip the contents of the pan into a colander set over another pan to catch the sauce. Tip the contents of the colander into a large pie or casserole dish along with the reserved bacon. Boil the sauce and season to taste. Thicken with the loosened cornflour until you have a sauce that coats the back of a spoon. Spoon enough of the sauce over the beef to barely cover and loosen it (don’t be tempted to add too much), then stir. You can freeze or refrigerate the sauce and offer it on the side when you serve the pie.

Boil the potatoes until tender, about 15-20 minutes. Drain and replace the lid, then give the pan a good shake to break them up a bit. Add the butter and milk gradually as you mash, then season well.

Spoon the potatoes over the meat and use a knife or spoon to mark a pattern over the top. You can cool the pie at this stage and freeze if you like before baking as below.

Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.

Bake the pie for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until golden. Increase the heat to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 for the final 10 minutes to get it nicely browned on top.

(Original recipe by Gary Rhodes for BBC Good Food Magazine, November 2005.)

Beef Bourguignon Pie

Beef Bourguignon Pie

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Another Take on Chilli Con Carne

Posted in Beef, Food, Gluten-free, tagged , , , , , , , , on 28 November 2016| 4 Comments »

Chilli con carne

Oh yes, another chilli recipe. This one is interesting though as it uses braising steak instead of mince. We loved it!

Wine Suggestion: A juicy red with a bit of spice is our choice for this dish especially those with a good dollop of Grenache in them. First choice might be a good Cotes du Rhone, but venturing a bit from the tried and trusted we found a Spanish Garnacha made by Bodegas Monfil. An inexpensive wine from the Cariñena region is Spain with bags of flavour but also open, round and juicy; perfect for a Chilli!

Chilli Con Carne – serves 4

  • olive oil
  • 2 medium onions, finely chopped
  • 2 celery sticks, finely chopped
  • 400g braising steak, trimmed and cut into very small pieces
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 red chilli, chopped
  • 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
  • 1 heaped tsp paprika
  • 1 tin of plum tomatoes
  • 1 beef stock cube
  • ½-1 tsp dried chilli flakes
  • 1 small square 85% cocoa dark chocolate (optional)
  • tin red kidney beans, drained
  • sour cream, to serve
  • chopped coriander, to serve
  • cooked brown rice, to serve

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a casserole dish over a low heat. Fry the celery and onions over a gentle heat until softened and translucent.

Add the garlic & chilli and fry until the garlic is cooked, then add the cumin and paprika and cook stirring for another 30 seconds. Remove this mixture from the pan and set aside. Add another tbsp of oil to the pan, turn up the heat, and quickly fry the meat in batches to brown it.

Return the onions to the pan and add the tin of tomatoes, breaking the tomatoes up with the back of a spoon. Crumble the stock cube into the tomato tin, fill with water and tip into the pan. Add the chilli flakes and simmer gently for 2 hours, or until thick and glossy, stirring now and then.

Add the chocolate and stir in, then stir in the kidney beans and heat through.

Serve with brown rice, coriander & sour cream.

(Original recipe by Victoria Moore in BBC Olive Magazine, April 2013.)

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