Beef and chestnut casserole
Another newbie! I'm in the UK, have been cooking for the last 40 years and am particularly find of Italian and Indian food. I love to make my own bread and am in love with my crockpot :) I thought I'd share a dish I've been making for years; I don't know where the idea came from but it never fails to please. Notes: the quality of the beef is important; get the leanest you can. Also, the chestnuts in this dish make it very filling so take that into account if you're planning a menu. The list of ingredients make it look complicated but it isn't - believe me! By the way, I have also cooked this very successfully in a crockpot on low - and I apologise for the lack of conversion to US measurements...
Ingredients
Method
Ingredients
- 750g - 1kg best quality braising (round) steak, trimmed of all fat
- 100g each of carrot, celery, onion and leek, roughly chopped
- oil
- half bottle red wine
- 250 ml beef stock
- 10 ml red wine vinegar
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sprig of thyme
- 10 ml tomato paste
- 15 ml roughly crushed black peppercorns
- 30 ml redcurrant jelly
- 100 ml port
- 10 ml cornflour (cornstarch?)
- salt to taste - I don't add salt to anything anymore, but you may wish to, of course ;)
- 15ml olive oil
- 120g cooked and peeled chestnuts (canned or vacuum packed work really well)
- 120g crimini (or other well flavoured) mushrooms
Method
- Roughly chop the onion, celery, carrot and leek.
- Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan, add the vegetables and cook for five minutes over a medium heat.
- Add the next nine ingredients, stir, bring to the boil and then simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
- Strain the stock and discard the vegetables and herbs. Return the stock to the pan.
- Blend the cornflour with a little water, bring the stock back up to the boil and whisk in the cornflour mix, stirring until thickened. Season with salt if desired.
- Cube the beef. Heat oil in a flameproof casserole and brown the beef quickly in batches. Add the sauce and bring back to just under the boil.
- Cook at 150c (gas mark 2, 300f) for about 3 hours, or until the beef is tender. I like to cook beef like this until it can be pulled apart with a spoon...
- Remove the beef from the sauce and boil sauce rapidly to reduce to about 500 ml or thereabouts. Return the beef and keep warm.
- Heat olive oil in a small saucepan and quickly fry chestnuts and mushrooms. Add to the casserole, stir in gently and serve with plain mashed potatoes and a green vegetable. I like to serve sprouts with this dish, which are a nice compliment to the rich, almost sweet sauce - or some lightly steamed spring cabbage with lots of black pepper.