Beef Barola Recipes

BEEF BRAISED IN BAROLO

Steps:

• Heat the oven, with a rack in the center, to 250°F.
• Season all surfaces of the roast with 1 teaspoon salt. Pour the olive oil into the big pan, and set over medium-high heat. Lay the roast in, and brown it on each side for a minute or two, without moving, until caramelized all over. Remove to a platter.
• Still over medium-high heat, drop in the cut vegetables and garlic cloves, toss to coat with oil, and spread out in the pan. Drop in the rosemary, sage leaves, grated nutmeg, peppercorns, dried porcini, and remaining teaspoon salt, and toss all together. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring frequently and scraping up the browned meat bits on the pan bottom, just until the vegetables soften, then lower the heat.
• Push the vegetables to the sides, and return the roast to the pan, laying flat on the bottom. Pour in the three bottles of wine and any meat juices that collected on the platter. The roast should be at least half submerged-add beef stock as needed.
• Cover the pot, and heat until the wine is steaming but not boiling. Uncover the pan, and place it in the oven. After 30 minutes, rotate the roast so the exposed meat is submerged in the braising liquid. Braise this way, turning the meat in the pan every 30 minutes, for about 3 hours, until fork-tender. The liquid should not boil&151;if it does, pour in some cold water to stop the bubbling, and lower the oven temperature.
• After 4 1/2 hours or so, check the beef with a meat thermometer. When its internal temperature reaches 180°F-it should be easily pierced with a fork-take the pan from the oven. Remove the meat to a platter, with intact carrot and celery pieces to serve as a garnish.
• Skim any fat from the braising juices, heat to a boil, and reduce to a saucy consistency that coats the back of a spoon. Pour through a sieve set over a clean container. Press in the juices from the strained herbs and vegetable pieces. Pour in any juices from the meat platter, and season the sauce to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. (If you are not going to serve right away, put the meat and reserved vegetables in the sauce to rest and cool, for a couple of hours or overnight.)
• To serve, slice the meat crosswise (easier when it is cool). Pour a shallow layer of sauce in a wide skillet, and lay the slices in, overlapping. Heat the sauce to bubbling, spooning it over the beef, so the slices are lightly coated. Lift them with a broad spatula, and slide onto a warm platter, fanned out. Heat the carrots and celery in the sauce too, if you've saved them, and arrange on the platter. Serve, passing more heated sauce at the table.

BRAISED BEEF IN BAROLO (CROCK POT)

Steps:

• Tie the beef with kitchen string & place in a large dish; add the next 10 ingredients and let marinade for 6 to 7 hours.
• Drain the meat, reserving the marinade and pat dry with paper towels.
• Heat the butter, oil & bacon fat in a pan; add the meat and cook over high heat, turning frequently, until browned all over, then transfer to a slow cooker.
• Tip the pan and remove as much fat as possible, then deglaze pan with remaining wine & pour over beef; add marinade & beef broth to slow cooker.
• Cook on low for 7 to 8 hours; the meat is cooked when it feels very tender at the pricking of a knife or fork.
• Remove beef from slow cooker & remove kitchen string; tent for about 10 minutes before carving.
• Make Sauce: Remove bay leaf, stir in cocoa powder & pour liquid into a blender or food processor; being careful with this hot liquid, process until smooth.
• If desired, thicken on stove top using flour, corn starch or arrowroot.

BEEF IN BAROLO

Steps:

• The night before, put the beef in a large bowl. Pour over the wine, add the herbs, peppercorns and juniper berries, and leave to soak overnight. The following day, remove the beef and pat dry, setting aside the wine and aromatics. (You can skip this step if you don't have time.)
• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Heat 1 tbsp of the vegetable oil in a large casserole. Add the beef, browning all over except for the bone side, then remove and set aside. Add the red wine, herbs, peppercorns and juniper berries. Boil for around 15 mins until reduced by half, then return the meat to the pan and add the stock. Return the mixture to the boil, then cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 2½ hrs.
• Fry the onion and carrot in a frying pan over a high heat until golden brown, then set aside. Remove the stew from the oven and carefully lift out the meat. Sieve the remaining pan contents into a large jug, discarding the contents of the sieve. The fat from the beef will rise to the surface - skim it off. Pour the skimmed sauce back into the casserole dish, then add the browned veg and meat. Cover, then return to the oven for another 1½ hrs, removing the lid for the last 30 mins to let the sauce reduce, then serve with polenta drizzled with truffle oil.