Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Oxtail Stew (Minus the Stew)

Rabo guisado, arroz blanco, habichuelas rosadas

A lot of the oxtail (rabo) recipes I see are for a stew; something with a few veggies, a moderate amount of liquid, and meant to be eaten alone. While this tastes well I've never cooked oxtail this way. I like the sauce to be thick and a perfect accompaniment to white rice and red kidney beans. I've been cooking it this way for years and it's one of my mom's favourite dishes. She's sick today so I decided to spoil her. I also thought to take a few pictures of the process as well as the final product.

I used a pound and a half of oxtail. The first step was to mix about three cups of flour, five tablespoons of salt, and two tablespoons of pepper in a plastic container (one I never returned to the neighbours heh) and made sure the oxtail were well covered.


In the meantime I let two tablespoons of butter melt in my stock pot. Once the oxtail was covered I added them into the pot, a few pieces at a time, until browned on all sides. I set that aside.


Into the pot I added in chopped onions, peppers, and garlic and let that sautee until caramelized.


The oxtail went back into the post along with 8oz of tomato sauce, beef broth, oregano, cilantro, parsley, an adobo mix, and a tiny dash of Worcestershire sauce.


It look pretty watery and...well, empty in the above pic but it's not. I bring it up to a boil and then let it simmer for a wonderful three hours. In that time the liquid has reduced to a thick gravy. I adjust salt and pepper to taste and then serve with the rest of the meal.

My dinner plate (no presentation; I was hungry!!)

Mmm Mmm Mmmm. This is a perfect stick-to-the-ribs kind of meal. Add in a nice salad and a cold drink, and you're good to go. To really up the ante on this meal I followed it up with a nice Dulce de Leche ice cream. My waistline gave up the good fight.

Until next time,
<3 Jess

2 comments:

Bakin Rapscallion said...

That meal was made with love. That does it! I'm petitioning the Food Network. You need your own show. Forget pictures--your dishes need to be on video so they be played back in slow motion.

Splendid pictures, by the way--you know how to tease a person.

Dulce de Leche--caramel goodness with an accent.

The divider rope for the waistline is just gonna have to be moved...somethings in life are just worth it!

Jess said...

Everything I cook is made with love. actually my grandma taught me that anything made with love will taste good.

Speaking of Food Network, I used to write to them all the time and tell them they needed to have more Hispanic/Caribbean food on the channel. They finally got one this year. I was so excited!

Thanks for the compliments on the cooking and pictures. I actually don't know what half of the buttons on my camera do; I point, shoot, and hope for the best. :)