Stifado Food

BEEF STIFADO IN THE SLOW COOKER

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over high heat and cook beef, onion, and garlic until meat is browned on all sides and onions are soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, nutmeg, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, rosemary, salt and a good pinch of black pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until ingredients blend, about 3 minutes. Add wine and vinegar and stir to combine.
• Turn slow cooker to Low setting. Pour beef mixture into slow cooker and stir in ketchup.
• Cook on Low until beef is tender, 6 to 8 hours.
• Meanwhile, heat remaining olive oil in a skillet and cook shallots until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Add cooked shallots to stew for the last 1 to 2 hours of cooking.
• Remove and discard cinnamon stick, bay leaves, and rosemary sprig before serving.

BEEF STIFADO

Steps:

• put meat in a frying pan and sear the meat then add the olive oil, onions and garlic leave until onions start to go soft (about 5 minutes)
• Then add the glass of red wine and 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, cover and leave for 5 minutes
• then add your cinnamon, stock cube, cloves, nutmeg, bay leaves, rosemary, tomato puree and salt and pepper to taste. keep stirring to let all your ingredients mix together.
• then finally add your chopped tomatoes and continue stirring for 5 minutes,
• then transfer to a clay pot or casserole dish and add about 1/4 - 1/2 litre of water, be careful not to drown the sauce, then cook for at least one hour in the oven on a moderate heat, keeping checking you dont want it to dry out and add water if needed you are aiming for a thick rich sauce texture,
• whilst cooking place your 500 grams of shallots into hot water to soften the skin and peel, then fry these in a little olive oil, be careful not to burn them, just aim to soften them and add a little colour, add these to Stifado after one hour of cooking in the oven and then add them to the pot and cook for a further 1 hour until the meat is tender.

BEEF STIFADO

Steps:

• Heat half of the butter and half of the first tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown half of the beef cubes on all sides, and place into a large saucepan. Repeat with the remaining butter, olive oil, and beef. Stir the onions and garlic into the oil remaining in the skillet, and reduce heat to medium; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Pour in the red wine, and bring to a simmer, then scrape the onions into the saucepan with the beef.
• Season the beef with salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, and orange zest. Pour in the diced tomatoes and water. Cover, and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat; then reduce heat to medium-low, and continue simmering 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet over medium heat. Stir in the pearl onions, and cook until they are well browned, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes. After the beef has simmered for an hour, add the pearl onions, recover, and continue simmering 20 minutes.
• Remove the lid, and simmer, uncovered until the stew has reduced and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove the orange zest before serving.

BEEF STIFADO

Steps:

• Season the beef with salt and pepper.
• Place butter in the bottom of a large crockpot.
• Add the meat and turn to coat with butter.
• Arrange the onions over the meat.
• Mix the tomato paste through the garlic, and pour over the meat and onions, but do not stir.
• Add the bay leaf through the raisins; do not stir.
• Simmer on low 8-10 hours.
• At serving time, remove the bay leaf, cinnamon stick and cloves and stir the stifado gently to blend.

RABBIT STIFADO

Steps:

• Rinse the rabbit pieces and place them in a mixing bowl together with the bay leaves and vinegar; mix well and leave to marinate for at least 2 hours, or overnight; remove the rabbit from the marinade and pat dry with kitchen paper.
• Heat half of the olive oil in a large saucepan until hot, add the rabbit and fry the pieces until quite brown on all sides; add the tomato paste, bay leaves (left over from the marinade), sugar, garlic, spices, wine and the hot water.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Bring to the boil mixing well then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan; add the onions and sauté gently for 15 minutes stirring occasionally, until golden all over; after the rabbit has been cooking for 1 hour, add the onions and oil from the frying pan to the saucepan; combine, then re-cover and simmer for a further 15 minutes; fish out the cinnamon stick, allspice berries and rosemary sprig.
• Note: This can be served with pasta, noodles, rice or oven-roasted potatoes, but my personal favourite is homemade french-fries, which taste delicious dunked in the spicy sauce.

ONE-POT BEEF STIFADO

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a flameproof casserole over a medium-high heat and brown the beef all over, removing it to a plate with a slotted spoon as you go (you may need to do this in batches). Drizzle the rest of the oil into the pan. Peel the onions (but leave whole) and add to the pan, then scatter over the sugar. Sizzle for 5 mins, stirring now and then until starting to brown. Add the garlic, bay, cinnamon stick, allspice, cloves and oregano, and cook for 1 min more. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for another minute, then tip in the beef along with any resting juices. Stir to coat in the spiced onion mixture.
• Add the red wine vinegar and chopped tomatoes. Rinse the cans out with the wine and pour it in, then add a third of a can of water. Season with salt and stir well. Bring to a simmer, stir again, then cover with the lid and transfer to the oven for 1 hr.
• Remove from the oven and stir again. If the sauce looks very thick, add a splash more water. Cover again and return to the oven for another hour, or until the meat is fork-tender - the timing will depend on the cut you've used. Serve hot. To get ahead, leave to cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container and chill for up to three days or freeze for up to three months. Defrost completely in the fridge overnight, then reheat in a pan over a low heat with a splash more water to loosen, if needed.