Wild Plum Events suggests pairing with Telaya 2016 or 2017 Boushey Cabernet Sauvignon
Makes about 6-8 Servings
For best results make this dish at least a day ahead. Can be comfortably up to 5 days in advance before reheating.
Preheat oven to 325º
Equipment: Large heavy bottom pot or saucepan with lid that will comfortably hold a 5# piece of beef. Tongs.
Ingredients:
• About 5# of beef chuck or beef brisket*
• oil
• 1 large. Onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
• About ½ cup Wine, red or white.
• About 1 cup Stock (chicken or beef)
• 1 bay leaf
Set your large sauce pot over medium high heat. Add a slick of oil to the pan. Generously sprinkle the beef on all sides with salt. Don’t be shy with the salt. Lightly sprinkle the beef with black pepper. Once the oil in the pan begins
to give off visible whisps of smoke, add the seasoned beef to the pan. Vigorously sear the beef on all sides until it has a nice caramel color. This will take anywhere from 2-5 minutes depending on temperature of the beef, pan and stove. It will also probably fill your kitchen with smoke but don’t worry, it’s all part of the process.
Once the beef has a nice brown color on all sides, remove to a plate and pour off any excess fat from the pan. Reduce heat to medium and add carrots and onions to the pot. Stir the onions around and let them cook a few minutes until they begin to sweat out some of their juices. Add the tomato paste, wine, stock and bay lead and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn off the heat, add the beef back to the pot, cover and put in the oven. Bake until meat is tender and easily pulls apart, about 3-4 hours. Let the meat rest in the juices until cool enough to handle then put the whole pot, uncovered into the refrigerator or transfer to a more reasonably sized vessel if necessary.
To prepare to serve:
Remove chilled meat and sauce from the refrigerator. Pull and discard any fat that has formed on the cover of the meat sauce. Remove meat from sauce. Slice meat against the grain into desired portion size, chunks work best for
Chuck and slices are best for brisket. Pour all the meat sauce into a saucepan and set over medium heat. Reduce sauce by at least half until it has a pleasant sheen and is slightly viscous. Taste it to make sure it is delicious. Pour
sauce over sliced meat, cover and set over low heat on the stove or place in a 200 degree oven. It will take about an hour for the beef to come back to hot. Once hot it is safe to hold warm for up to 4 hours as long as the liquid does
not run dry. If the liquid does get low, you can add a tablespoon or two of water to keep it in check. Kick back and have a glass of wine until you’re ready to eat.
Serve braised beef with steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes and plenty of Telaya Cabernet