What are oxtails?
Think braised beef short ribs, but with even more flavor, and you'll understand why those of us who eat beef tail get dreamy at the thought of them.
Yes, beef tails come from the tail of the cattle—a well-trained muscle covered in marbled fat. Segmented by vertebrae, so very rich in iron, gelatin and bone marrow.
TIME TO COOK VEAL TAILS
|
15 min |
3Ch |
EASY |
4-6 |
Note: We serve the veal tails with the bones, but if you wish you can easily remove the bones from the meat before serving .
1. Slow cooking the oxtails is the best approach
As with most difficult cuts, the oxtails it is best to cook them slowly for several hours. They tend to be fatty, so it's good to make them a day ahead so we can refrigerate them overnight and scrape the fat off the top the next day.
Ingredients
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1 kg. Black Angus beef tails cut into pieces
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With olive oil and freshly ground black pepper
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1 tablespoon beef tallow , plus more for roasting the vegetables
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1 medium yellow onion , chopped
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1 large carrot , chopped
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1 rib of celery , chopped
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3 aims garlic cloves
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1 bay leaf
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Clip thyme
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2 jars of 700 g beef bone broth
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700-1000 ml. Red wine
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2 carrots , cut into 2-3 cm pieces.
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2 parsnips , cut into pieces of 2-3 cm.
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2 turnips or rutabagas, cut into 2-3 cm pieces.
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Parsley
2. Steps for preparing the oxtails
Pat the veal tails dry with paper towels. Sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of tallow over medium to medium-high heat in a 6-quart Dutch oven.
Working in batches and don't overcrowd the pan, sear the veal tails in a hot pan on all sides until golden brown. Use tongs to remove the oxtails to a plate, setting them aside.
3. Fry the onion, carrots and celery:
Add the chopped onion, carrot and celery to the pan. Cook for a few minutes until the onions are translucent.
3. Add the veal tails, garlic, bay leaf, thyme, salt, stock, wine, then bring to a simmer:
Add beef tails back to pan. Add the whole garlic cloves, stock and wine. Add the bay leaf, thyme and half a teaspoon of salt. Let it simmer. Reduce heat to low.
Cover and cook for 3 hours until the meat is tender.
4. Preheat the oven to 175°C.
About 1 hour before the meat is ready, preheat the oven to roast the root vegetables.
5. Roast the root vegetables:
Toss carrots, parsnips, and turnips in a roasting pan with 1 Tbsp. tallow. Sprinkle well with salt and pepper.
Roast the vegetables for 1 hour or until lightly browned and cooked through.
6. Remove from the fat:
When meat is tender, remove veal tails from cooking liquid. Either skim the fat off the top with a spoon, use a fat separator to remove the fat, or refrigerate the cooking liquid for a few hours so the fat hardens, making it easier to remove.If you are cooking the dish in advance, at this stage you can simply put the stew in the fridge (let it come to room temperature first), with the beef tails still in it, and let it chill overnight. The next day, scrape off the fat, reheat, and then remove the meat from the pan.
7. Strain the solids from the cooking liquid and reduce
8. Add back the veal tails and roasted vegetables:
Then add back the beef tails and add the roasted vegetables to the pan. Heat over low heat for half an hour to allow the flavors to blend.
Add some chopped parsley before serving.
If you liked the recipe, let us know!
