Wednesday, December 1 2010

The year has nearly all gone. How did that happen?

This is what I made yesterday from a recipe I saw on TV that had no ingredient list, no amounts, no help. So I had to just wing it. As is typical with these things, it tastes just as good if not better the next day.

I got about six beef short ribs that were sliced around an inch thick. Much thinner and I don't think it will work as well as the ribs won't hold up so well. 

Make sure you cut of the fat first as if you don't (like I didn't) just ends up floating on top and you have a lot of skimming to do. 

Then I mixed cumin and chili powder - I used about a 2-3 ratio but next time I would reduce it to maybe 1 to 4. Depends on how much you like cumin, I suppose.  Rub it on the meat, sear in a pan and then transfer to an oven-proof dish. In the same pan, I first drained the oil, then poured a carton of beef stock, half a tin of tomato paste, a handful of raisins, about 8 black olives sliced, and, after tasting it, about 2 tablespoons of soy sauce (it might need more but you can add this later as the olives help with the salt), and then when it is coming to a boil you add 2 tablespoons of white flour that have been mixed to a slurry with some water. Oh, I also added about a cup of red wine that was the last of a bottle I had open. Mix it up and pour on the beef. Cover and put in a 350 oven for around 90 minutes. Stir and taste the sauce. Add more soy sauce if needed. The "original" did not use soy sauce but I felt it really needed the depth.

This goes well with boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes or just plain rice. I thought maybe something beany would be a nice vegetable accompaniment. I had some feta cheese (not in this pic) which I grated on top as I served it up, which I personally liked. A little parsley would not have gone amiss, but I didn't have any at hand.

I will almost definitely make it again, but this time I will make some adjustments, and keep more careful note of the amounts.

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Here is Ella, on the lookout for squirrels.

And once the squirrel threat is over, they go back their main task: protecting the house.

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