20-HOUR SOUS VIDE OXTAIL STEW ON CREAMY MUSTARD MASH
Author: 
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
I made this stew in a sous vide waterbath, but you can easily replicate it in a slow-cooker or crock pot.
Ingredients
  • 1.8kg oxtail pieces
  • 8 small to medium whole onions
  • 1 full bulb of garlic, unpeeled
  • 100g Demerara Sugar
  • 250ml white wine
  • salt and pepper
  • ⅛ tsp ground cloves
  • pinch of cayenne pepper
  • FOR THE SAUCE:
  • 20g butter
  • 2 sticks of celery, finely diced
  • 1 medium leek, thinly sliced
  • 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into half-moons
  • 10 closed cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • pinch cayenne pepper
  • 2 tsp English mustard
  • salt and pepper
  • 450g cooking liquid from the oxtail
  • 4 Tbsp onion puree from the oxtail
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C
  2. Rinse and dry the whole onions and garlic but do not peel them. Place them on a lined baking tray in the preheated oven and roast for 15 minutes. Remove the garlic and allow the onions to roast for a further 35 minutes.
  3. Allow the onions and garlic to cool until they are easy to handle, then squeeze the roasted garlic pulp and onion pulp from the skins in to a small saucepan - you will find it comes our very easily.  Add the wine, sugar and seasonings, bring to the boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Using an immersion blender, puree the onion mix to a thick pulp and allow to cool completely.
  4. Pre-heat the water bath to 82C.
  5. Place the oxtail pieces in a plastic bag (I used one large pouch but it might be less unwieldy to use two smaller ones next time).  Add the onion puree to the bag and place in the freezer for 15 minutes, just so that the onion mix is starting to solidify (this will prevent it from being sucked up into the vacuum nozzle when you seal the bag). Using a vacuum sealer, seal the pouch on full vacuum.
  6. Place the sealed pouch into the watre bath at 82C and cook for 20 hours.
  7. After 20 hours, remove the oxtail from the vacuum pouch, pass the cooking liquid through a sieve and set aside in a cool place (I put mine in the fridge as I was in a hurry).  Once it cools, scoop the solidified fat off the top and you will be left with the rest of the sauce which has set to a jelly. Flake the meat from the bones while still warm and pull apart with 2 forks.  Remove any large chunks of fat.
  8. In a large saucepan, melt the butter and sauté the leeks, carrots and celery until beginning to soften.  Add the flaked oxtail meat, cooking jelly, mustard and onion puree.  Bring to the boil and then turn down to simmer covered for 15-20 minutes. Add the mushrooms only in the last 5 minutes.  Check for seasoning and add salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste.  If the sauce is a little too thin, stir in a little cornstarch mixed with cold water.
  9. Serve on mashed potatoes made with penty of butter and a tablespoon of English mustard stirred in.
Recipe by Cooksister | Food, Travel, Photography at https://www.cooksister.com/2012/11/20-hour-sous-vide-oxtail-stew.html