SERVES: 4-6
50g butter
1 kg beef shins (You can also use beef cheeks, blade steak, chuck steak, cross cut blade steak)
1 large onion
1 carrot
½ celery stick
¼ leek
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tablespoon chopped herbs
2 Tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 ½ cup beef stock
Salt and pepper
Chopped parsley
Flour for dusting
DUMPLINGS:
40g butter – melted
1 cup Ricotta
1/3 cup flour
1 egg – beaten
¼ cup grated parmesan
Handful basil leaves
Salt & pepper
Preheat oven to 140 degrees C. Chop the vegetables (onion, carrot, celery, leek) into medium chunks. Heat an oven proof frypan and melt half of (25g) the butter. Add the vegetables and garlic and sauté until starting to brown. Remove from pan and leave to one side. Dust the beef with flour and season with salt and pepper. Add the remaining 25g butter to the same frypan and brown the shins on both sides. Add the wine, stock, tomato paste, herbs and sautéed vegetables. Cover with tight fitting lid and cook in the oven until the meat is very tender, approximately 3 – 3 1/2 hours.
DUMPLINGS:
Mix together the ricotta, egg, melted butter, parmesan and basil to a smooth dough, stir in flour and salt and pepper. Using a spoon, create large golf ball size dumplings and set aside.
Remove from the oven. Increase the oven temperature to 180 deg C. Place the dumplings into the meat juices between the meat pieces. Cover with the lid and return to the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve straight from the pan or place onto separate plates
2 beef cheeks , (around 800g)
8 shallots
2 cloves of garlic
60 g unsalted butter
1 bunch of fresh thyme
350 ml quality red wine
30 g quality dark chocolate (at least 80%) , optional
750 ml organic beef stock
750 g parsnips
250 g celeriac
2 bramley apples
50 ml milk
1 heaped teaspoon quality jam , such as blackberry or redcurrant
Preheat the oven to 140ºC
Using a sharp knife, remove the sinew from the beef cheeks. Peel and halve the shallots and peel and finely slice the garlic.
Place half the butter in a medium ovenproof casserole dish over a medium heat. Sear the meat all over, until browned on all sides, then leave to one side.
Add the shallots and fry for 8 to 10 minutes, or until slightly browned. Stir in the garlic and pick the thyme leaves straight into the pan. Fry for a couple of minutes, then return the beef cheeks to the pan and pour in the red wine.
Bring to the boil, cook the wine for around 5 minutes, until reduced by half, then finely grate in the chocolate (if using).
Pour in enough beef stock to cover, and turn up the heat. Bring back to the boil, season, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Cover with a tight layer of tinfoil and a lid, then place the pan in the oven and slowly braise for 4 to 4½ hours, or until incredibly tender.
When the beef is almost ready, make the creamed parsnips. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.
Peel and chop the parsnip, celeriac and apples into 3cm chunks, taking care to remove the apple seeds and core. Add the fruit and veg to the pan, and simmer for about 12 minutes, or until cooked through. Drain and steam dry over the hot pan.
Stir in the rest of the butter and then spoon into a food processor. Pour in the milk and add a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper, then blitz until smooth, adding a little more milk if needed (you can do this in the pan with a hand blender if you prefer).
Remove the cheeks from the casserole dish, then place the dish over a high heat. Cook rapidly until the sauce thickens. Stir in the jam, taste and adjust the seasoning, then add the cheeks back to the pan and baste.
Serve with the creamy parsnips and all your favourite trimmings.
1/4 cup plain flour
1.2kg beef cheeks
2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium brown onions, cut into wedges
6 cloves garlic, halved
2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
1 cup (250ml) Shiraz red wine
2 cups (500ml) Massel beef stock
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 bay leaves
3 sprigs fresh thyme
40g Coles Australian Salted Butter
6 shiitake mushrooms, halved
6 medium swiss brown mushrooms, halved
12 small button mushrooms
Salt, to season
Season flour with salt and pepper. Place flour in a large snap-lock bag. Add half the beef. Seal. Shake to coat. Remove from bag, shaking off excess flour. Transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining beef.
Step 2
Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook beef in batches, for 3 minutes each side or until browned. Transfer to a plate.
Step 3
Add onion, garlic and carrots to pan. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until golden. Place half the onion mixture in the bowl of a 5 litre slow-cooker. Top with beef and remaining onion mixture.
Step 4
Add wine, stock, sugar, paste and herbs to frying pan. Bring to the boil then pour over beef in slow-cooker.
Step 5
Add butter to pan, then mushrooms. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until browned. Add to beef.
Step 6
Cover with lid. Turn slow-cooker on low. Cook for 8 hours or until beef is tender. (Alternately, turn slow-cooker on high and cook for 4 hours). Sprinkle with fresh thyme and serve with garlic mash, steamed asparagus and green beans.
1.2 kilograms beef short ribs or beef cheeks, excess fat trimmed off
sea salt and ground pepper
1 tablespoon grape seed oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
½ cup coconut cream
¼ cup smooth peanut butter
3 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons gochujang paste
1 tablespoon each tomato paste and grated fresh ginger
1 each cinnamon stick and star anise
1 litre good beef stock
300 grams ramen noodles (or use egg/udon/soba noodles)
sliced spring onions, toasted sesame seeds, chopped roasted peanuts, kimchi, crispy shallots and coriander
Preheat the oven to 150°C regular bake.
Season the ribs all over with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large lidded ovenproof pot and sear the ribs until well browned. Do this in batches if needed. Transfer to a plate. Don’t wash the pot.
Add all the remaining ingredients to the pot, except the stock, and stir together, smooshing the peanut butter until everything is well combined. Stir in the stock and add the ribs and any resting juices to the pot. Season with salt and pepper then bring to the boil. Cover and place in the oven. Cook for 3–4 hours or until meltingly tender and falling apart.
Using tongs, lift out the ribs and place on a large plate. Pull the meat off the bones, discarding any cartilage, and shred with two forks into large bite-sized pieces.
TO SERVE: Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. Put the noodles in the base of warm, deep bowls and add the beef. Ladle over the soup. Top with any or all of the topping suggestions.
COOK’S NOTE: The soup can be made two days ahead. Add the shredded beef to the soup, cool then cover and chill. When ready to serve, scoop off the fat that will have set on the top and discard. Reheat slowly on the stove top or in a moderate oven until piping hot. Add the remaining ingredients to serve.