Red Wine Braised Beef Cheeks over Dutch Baby with Carrots and Tarragon
My definition of “one pot” might be a little different from yours but here’s my version of it! I wanted to make something Autumn weather appropriate with crowd pleasing flavors, so I combined the classic flavors of a red wine braised meat with a Dutch baby, which is just a fancy version of a pancake, taken from the Joe Beef: Surviving The Apocalypse cookbook. While there are three recipes for this dish, please use what is most relevant for you and play around with different cuts of meat (this was originally supposed to be oxtail) and types of vegetables.
Ingredients
Red Wine Braised Beef Cheek
1.3 lb beef cheeks
1 onion, quartered
3 small leeks, cut into 1.5-inch pieces
1 small celeriac, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 head of garlic, peeled, cloves removed and halved
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pint red wine (ideally medium or full bodied)
5 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf
1 large sprig of rosemary
3 pieces allspice
1 teaspoon juniper berries
1 quart beef stock
3 small carrots
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
White pepper
Glazed Carrots
3 small carrots, peeled and cut on a bias
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup beef stock or chicken stock or water
Dutch Baby
160 g whole milk
90g all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 pinch salt
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1 pinch ground cinnamon
3 large eggs
To Finish
Tarragon
Black pepper
Salt the beef cheeks liberally and leave in the fridge overnight or on the counter for at least 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 300F (148C).
Heat a large dutch oven with a tablespoon of oil over high heat and sear the beef cheeks until caramelized, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove the meat from the pot and sear the onion, celeriac, leeks and garlic until caramelized, about 3 minutes.
Add the tomato paste, stir well until caramelized, 1 minute. Add the red wine and simmer for 5 minutes to remove some of the alcohol.
Tie the bay leaf, rosemary and thyme together with kitchen twine. Place the allspice and juniper berries in a steeping bag.
Add the beef stock to the pot with the herb sachet and spice bag. Bring the pot to a gentle simmer. Add the beef and cover with a cartouche and a lid, partially covered. Cook in the oven for 2.5 hrs, turning the meat over every 30 minutes or so to cook evenly.
When the beef is completely tender, remove from the pot and place in a bowl with some of the strained braising liquid and set aside. Continue reducing the remaining braising liquid until it coats the back of a spoon, 5-10 minutes.
Strain the braising liquid, add the beef back in and keep warm.
-
In a large pan, sear the carrots with half of the butter and a pinch of salt over medium heat until lightly caramelized, 2 minutes.
Add the sugar and the remaining butter and cook until the butter is completely melted. Add half of the stock or water and shake the pan vigorously to emulsify the butter.
Season to taste with more sugar or salt.
-
Preheat the oven to 450F (230C) with a carbon steel/cast iron pan at least 8-inches in diameter.
Combine everything in a blender for 30 seconds.
When the oven is ready, remove the pan and season immediately with a tablespoon of neutral oil or butter and all of the batter.
Bake undisturbed for 15 minutes.
-
Remove the Dutch baby from the oven and top with the beef cheeks, carrots, sauce, and garnish with tarragon and black pepper.