Hairy Bikers Oxtail Stew Recipe

Hairy Bikers oxtail stew takes 2kg of oxtail, three hours on the hob and one clever trick with the fat. The recipe is in One Pot Wonders, seasoned with red chilli, allspice and brown sugar, and finished with sweet potato so you do not need mash. It feeds four to six at roughly 710 calories.

They say a pot of oxtail stew was a regular in both their houses growing up and they still love it. The sweet potato is their own addition, put in so the pot gives you a whole meal rather than needing something on the side.

You cook it until the meat is tender but not quite falling off the bone. They mean that exactly, since most stews aim for meat that collapses, and here they want it holding together on the bone when it reaches the plate.

Hairy Bikers Oxtail Stew

Author: Alex Saidani Cooking Method:Simmering Cuisine:British Courses:Main

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 20 minutesCook time:3 hours 30 minutesRest time: minutesTotal time:3 hours 50 minutesServings:5 servingsCalories:710 kcal Best Season:Winter

Description

Everything comes out of the pot after three hours so the cooking liquid can cool and the fat sets on top. You lift that off solid, put the meat and vegetables back, then add sweet potato and reduce the sauce down. It serves four to six.

Ingredients

• 2kg oxtail pieces
• 50g plain flour
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 2 celery sticks, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp light soft brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 300ml red wine
• bouquet garni, made from 1 thyme sprig, 2 bay leaves and 2 parsley sprigs
• 400ml beef stock
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
• salt and black pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare the oxtail: Trim off any thick, hard pieces of fat, then pat the meat dry. Dust the pieces in the flour and brush off any excess.
2. Sear the meat: Heat half the olive oil in a large flameproof casserole dish and fry the oxtail a few pieces at a time until all of it is well seared. Set the meat aside.
3. Cook the vegetables: Add the onion, carrot and celery to the dish and cook over a high heat until they take on some colour, then stir in the garlic and chilli and cook for another couple of minutes.
4. Add the sugar and spice: Stir in the sugar and allspice and keep stirring until the sugar has dissolved, then add the tomato purée and stir for another minute.
5. Add the wine and stock: Pour in the red wine and bring to the boil. Season well, put the oxtail back in, tuck in the bouquet garni and pour in the beef stock. Bring back to the boil, turn the heat down and cover.
6. Simmer for three hours: Leave it to simmer for at least 3 hours, until the oxtail is tender but not quite falling off the bone.
7. Skim the fat cold: Lift out the oxtail and then the vegetables with a slotted spoon. Leave the liquid to cool, which lets the fat collect on top and set, then skim it off and return the meat and vegetables to the dish.
8. Add the sweet potato: Bring the stew back to the boil, add the sweet potato and simmer uncovered until the sauce has reduced and the sweet potato is tender.

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FAQs

Why let the liquid cool before skimming?

Because cold fat is solid and hot fat is not. Oxtail is a fatty cut, and trying to skim it while the stew is hot means chasing an oily film round the pan with a spoon.

Let it cool and the fat sets on top in a layer you can lift off in one piece. Give it an hour on the side, or put it in the fridge and it will be ready sooner. That wait is the difference between a stew that tastes deep and one that tastes greasy.

Why not cook it until the meat falls off the bone?

Because they want it to hold together when you serve it. The recipe says tender but not quite falling off the bone, so it still looks like oxtail on the plate rather than shredded beef in sauce.

Their other version, in Mums Still Know Best, goes the other way. That one bakes in the oven at 150°C until the meat is falling off the bones, then gets served with mash rather than having sweet potato cooked in the pot.

What does the allspice do?

It gives this stew a warmth that a plain beef stew does not have. Allspice tastes of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg all at once, and a single teaspoon runs through the whole pot.

It works alongside the chilli and the brown sugar, which are the other two things setting this apart. Together they push the flavour somewhere warmer and slightly sweeter than a traditional British stew.

How is this different from their oxtail soup?

Completely. Their oxtail soup pulls the meat off the bones, loosens everything with beef stock and steams eighteen suet dumplings on top for the last fifteen minutes.

Here the oxtail stays on the bone and the sauce reduces down thick. One is a bowl you eat with a spoon, the other is a plate you eat with a knife and fork.

What do I do with leftovers?

They give a good answer in the book. Strip the meat off the bones, mix it with any juices left in the pot and use it as a pasta sauce.

That works because the sauce is already thick after reducing. It keeps three days in the fridge and freezes for three months, since there is no dairy anywhere in it.