Beef Cheeks Slow Cooked With Port & Vanilla

🧂 Ingredients

• 4 beef cheeks

  about 1.2 kg, cut in half, sinew removed (ask your butcher to do this)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoon coconut oil

  or olive oil for frying
• 2/3 cup of port or fortified

  Sherry can also be used
• 1 tablespoon butter

  or ghee
• 1 large onion

  sliced
• 4 large garlic cloves

  roughly diced
• 4-5 pods cardamon

  or 1 star anise, optional
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

  red wine vinegar can also be used
• 3 bay leaves
• 6 cloves or 1/4 teaspoon of ground clove spice, cinnamon could also be used
• 1-2 vanilla beans

  depending on size, split (or 2 teaspoons vanilla essence)
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1.5 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 cups beef stock

  or bone broth, about 500 ml
• 1 large carrot

  peeled and sliced

Instructions

• 1 Preheat the oven to 175 C / 345 F.
• 2 Season the beef cheeks with salt and pepper. Heat a frying pan with oil over
  high heat, brown the cheeks on each side for about a minute and place in a
  heavy-based casserole dish.
• 3 Deglaze the frying pan with port, then add the butter, onion, garlic, cardamon
  seeds or star anize, vinegar, bay leaves, cloves, vanilla beans, pepper, tomato
  paste, and beef stock. Mix through and bring to a simmer, then carefully pour
  over the beef cheeks in the casserole dish.
• 4 Assemble the beef cheeks so they don't overlap and the garlic and onion are
  distributed evenly. Cover with foil and place the casserole in the oven. Cook
  covered for around 2 hours 45 minutes, turning beef cheeks frequently, every 25
  minutes.
• 5 Then remove the foil, add the carrots and cook uncovered for another 1 hour.
  Make sure to keep turning the beef cheeks as they will start to brown and dry up
  on the top. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed but there should be loads
  given the beef stock will reduce.
• 6 Serve with a side of greens sautéed in olive oil and garlic and some fresh green
  herbs on top.

Nutrition Info