Recipe: Slow-cooked beef cheeks with butter bean puree – صحيفة الصوت

Slow-cooked beef cheeks with butter bean puree

Serves 6

These beef cheeks are slow-cooked until so meltingly tender you could eat them with a spoon.

Creamy butter bean puree (or potato mash if preferred) is the best accompaniment for this dish.

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Ingredients

1½ kg beef cheeks, trimmed of sinew

1 large onion, finely diced

1 celery stalk, finely diced

1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced

4 cloves garlic, crushed

2 cups full-bodied red wine

3 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

2 cups liquid beef stock

Butter bean puree

2 x 400g tins butter beans, drained

2 cloves garlic, crushed

¼-⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 160C. Pat the beef dry with paper towels, then season all over with salt and pepper.

Heat a little oil in a large, flame-proof casserole pan set over a medium-high heat, and brown the beef in two batches for 2-3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate.

Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic to the pan, and cook for 5 minutes to soften. Stir in the wine, scraping the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Simmer for 5-8 minutes, or until the wine is reduced by a third.

Add the thyme, bay leaves and stock. Bring to the boil, then return the beef to the pan.

Cover the pan and place in the oven for 3 hours, or until the beef is very tender. Remove the beef and put to one side, and cook the sauce over high heat for 10-15 minutes, skimming any scum from the surface, to reduce and thicken. Adjust the seasoning of the sauce with salt and pepper.

To make the puree, place the beans and garlic in a food processor. Add the oil and salt and pepper, and process until smooth.

Heat in a pot set over a medium heat, stirring continuously until hot.

To serve, top the puree with the beef, and spoon over the sauce.