Flavoured butters are a simply way of adding flavour and punch to meat, easy to make and can be kept in your freezer for when you need it! The Olive Butter is particularly good with chicken, fish and roast vegetables! The method for the three flavoured butters are the same.
Café de Paris Butter: 125g butter 30ml chives, finely chopped 15ml parsley, finely chopped 5ml Dijon Mustard 1 clove of garlic, minced 5ml capers 1 anchovy fillet the zest of half a lemon, finely grated
Method: Allow the butter to come to room temperature and soften. Mix all the ingredients together. Spread a piece of plastic wrap on a kitchen surface, spoon the mixture on top and roughly shape it into a log shape. Fold the edge of the plastic wrap closest to you over the log shape and proceed to roll the butter in the plastic so that you have a plastic sausage. Now take hold of the two ends (the overhanging/extra plastic wrap) and roll the butter away from you on the surface. Tie the plastic ends and freeze until required.
Olive Butter: 125g butter, softened 190ml olives, chopped 15ml rosemary, chopped salt to taste
Garlic Butter: 125g butter, softened 3 cloves of garlic, minced 1,2ml salt 1,2ml pepper
Cook the steaks to your liking and set aside. Keep it covered and warm, to rest. Put a heavy-base pan on high heat and add the butter. If you cooked the steak in a pan, use the same one. Add the mushrooms and cook until browned and slightly charred on the edges. Remove from the pan. Turn the heat down to medium and cook the onion until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute while stirring. Transfer the mushroom back to the pan and sprinkle over the paprika. Pour the beef stock into the pan and stir with a wooden spoon, scraping loose any charred pieces stuck to the pan. Allow the stock to bubble away until reduced by half. Take the pan from the heat and stir in the sour cream and parsley. Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Place the cooked steaks in the sauce, cover the pan with a lid and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
This is slow cooking at its best with a punchy umami deliciousness! Leftovers and some salad make a fabulous wrap the next day.
about 2kg of beef brisket, bone in 2 onions, chopped 2 carrots, diced 4 cloves of garlic, minced 250ml red wine 500ml beef stock (cubes are perfect!) 500ml water 3 tins of diced tomato 2 bay leaves 45ml Worcestershire sauce 5ml salt
Preheat your oven to 180℃. Put a heavy-base ovenproof saucepan on to medium-high heat and cover the bottom with vegetable oil. Add the beef and brown it all over. Remove from the saucepan and set aside. Add some more oil to the pan and add the onion and carrot. Cook on a medium heat, stirring every now and then until the onion is soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Pour in the wine and simmer until reduced by half. Add the stock, water, tomato, bay leaf, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Return the beef to the saucepan and bring back to a simmer. Cover the saucepan with a lid, place in the oven and cook for 2 hours. Turn the meat, return the saucepan to the oven and cook for a further 2 hours. Take the brisket from the saucepan, place it in an oven tray and shred the meat by pulling it apart with two forks. Remove any bones and chunks of fat. Return the meat to the sauce and warm through. Serve on buttery mashed potato.
This recipe is traditional French fare and based on the famous boeuf bourguignon served in family-run bistros in small villages all over France except that it is cooked stove-top. I prefer this method as it enables one to literally keep an eye on it without sacrificing on taste. Although it is often served with baguette it is delicious served with creamy mashed potato. I also prefer to cook my beef bourguignon in a Merlot but tradition dictates a Pinot Noir.
Marinade: 800g chuck beef, cut into 4-5cm cubes 2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks 16 pearl onions, peeled 1 bay leaf 3 sprigs of thyme 750ml red wine, I prefer a Merlot
Marinate the beef by adding all the ingredients to a large ceramic dish. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 12 hours.
Strain the marinade into a bowl, reserving the liquid. Separate the beef, carrots and onion into three bowls. Pour the liquid into a saucepan and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Skim any impurities off the liquid and keep it warm on a low flame. Line a tray with paper towels and spread the cubed beef onto it. Pat the meat dry and season with 2,5ml salt and a few grindings of black pepper. Put a large saucepan onto a high heat and pour in enough oil to coat the bottom. Brown the meat in three batches, adding more oil if needed. Keep the browned meat aside in a bowl. Add the bacon to the same saucepan and cook on a high heat for about 3 minutes. Add to the bowl with the beef. Cook the mushrooms for about 5 minutes, until golden. Keep in a separate bowl. Turn the heat down slightly, add more oil if necessary and add the onions. Cook for about 5 minutes and then add the garlic to cook with the onion for one minute. Add the tomato paste to the onion and garlic and cook for another two minutes. Now add the butter and allow it to melt before adding the flour. Cook for two minutes while stirring continuously. Drizzle in the beef stock while stirring and then add the wine in a steady stream. Add the beef cubes, bacon, and 2,5ml salt and stir together. Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for one hour, checking/stirring once or twice. Remove the lid and add the mushrooms and onions. Replace the lid and cook for another hour and a half, checking every now and then. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning. Serve the beef bourguignon with mashed potato, rice or French baguette.
My Whisk and I 