Braised Oxtail
By Ed Baines from Britain's Best Dish
Ingredients
Oxtail
Carrots
Onions
Celery
Lard or beef dripping
Plain flour
Liquid (red wine, dark ale or stout)
Salt
Pepper
Thyme leaves, finely-chopped
Potatoes
Firstly, make sure you go to a good butchers to get your oxtail.
Season some plain flour with salt, pepper and if you can, finely-chopped thyme leaves.
Dust the oxtail on either side and seal it in your braising dish. You could use olive oil, but for the traditional taste, use lard or beef dripping.
Use a moderate heat on the hob to seal it off.
Once you've got a nice nutty brown colour, take it out and fry the vegetables - carrots, onions, celery and a little bit of garlic. Fry them off, then add a little bit of flour and mix that all in.
Once they are mixed, in goes the oxtail. You can either use red wine, or traditionally, they used to use a dark ale, beef stock or even stout.
Cover with some greaseproof paper at the level of the liquid, put in the oven at 150 degrees and let it cook gently for two hours.
Serve with some creamy mashed potatoes and it will melt in the mouth.
From Food and Drink with Bill Buckley, Sundays at 3pm on LBC 97.3.