Tag: beef

Beef Stew with Djeroek Poeroet

25 May 2023

A few weeks ago we were looking for a nice restaurant, one where we could enjoy a quick, tasty meal and a nice beer. We looked at the menu of De Volkslust and decided this was exactly what we’re looking for. The restaurant originates from Antwerp, Belgium. Some 15 minutes later they brought us a Flemish Beef Stew, served with fried potatoes. It looked and smelled great. And it tasted, eh, slightly different? Of course! Chef used Djeroek Poeroet! Interesting, you would expect bay leaf in a Flemish Stew, but this was definitely djeroek poeroet (or jeruk purut, the leaves of the Kaffir Lime). Great idea. Aromatic, refreshing, light. A few days later we made our version of it.
And typical for a good stew: make it a day in advance.

Wine Pairing

The obvious choice is a nice, cold beer. Perhaps the one you used for the stew? We used Affligem Blond, an award winning Belgian Blond beer with pleasant bitterness and fruitiness.
If you go for a glass of red wine, make sure it is full-bodied and rich; a wine with dark fruit and a touch of oak.

What You Need (for 4 persons)

  • 1 kilo of excellent, fat, marbled Beef
  • 2 Shallots
  • 250 grams of Button Mushrooms (Champignon de Paris)
  • Olive Oil
  • 2 bottles (33 cl) of Blond Belgian Beer
  • Bouquet Garni (Thyme, Parsley, Chives)
  • 6 leaves of Djeroek Poeroet (frozen preferred)
  • Black Pepper

What You Do

Slice the meat by following its structure. We prefer bigger parts, so not cubes. They will take longer to cook, but the meat benefits from this approach. Clean the mushrooms and slice the bigger ones in half. Coarsely shop the onion. Heat olive oil in a large pan and fry the meat. You probably will have to do this in 2 or 3 batches. Make sure the meat is nicely colored. Remove the meat from the pan and fry the mushrooms. Remove them when nicely golden, add some more olive oil and caramelize the sliced onions. When ready, add the mushrooms, the beef, the beer, the Bouquet Garni and 6 leaves of djeroek poeroet. Heat through and through. Close the pan and keep on a low heat for 5 to 6 hours. Stir every hour. Check the taste during the cooking process, perhaps you want to remove the djeroek poeroet (or add more!).
When you’re happy withe the cuisson, remove the meat from the pan, discard the bouquet Garni and reduce the sauce. Transfer the meat back into the pan, reheat, then cool and transfer to the refrigerator until the next day.
Serve with unpeeled potatoes fried in olive oil and (homemade) mayonaise.

Beef Stew with Djeroek Poeroet ©cadwu
Kaffir Lime Plant ©cadwu
Kaffir Limes ©cadwu

Classic Beef Stew

15 December 2022

Wintery weather, sunny and cold, the best time of year to enjoy a beef stew. We decided to cook an old-fashioned version, with red wine, bay leaf, mustard and black pepper. And patience of course, because it will take hours.

Regardless if you want to cook a Flemish Stew, Bœuf Bourguignon, Daube à la Provençale or this beef stew, you must use fatty, structured meat. The idea to use lean meat because fat is unhealthy or altogether wrong is one to forget quickly. Fat, structured meat is the key to a delicious stew. In general you’re looking for meat from the neck or the shoulder (beef chuck roast, sucade, paleron). When in doubt, ask your butcher.

Most recipes suggest dicing the meat. We didn’t want to do that. When cutting the meat before serving, we followed the structure of the meat, which gives the plate a rustic feel.

We served the beef stew with a beet root salad and cranberry compote.

Drink Pairing

A rich beer or a full-bodied red wine will be a great accompaniment with the stew. The dish comes with some sweetness (the stew, the salad and the compote, obviously) so the wine should have some acidity and tannins. A robust wine with aromas of dark fruit (plums, blackberries, cherries), a touch of oak and a long taste will be perfect. 

What You Need

  • 400 grams of excellent Fat, Structured Beef
  • 50 grams of organic Bacon
  • Butter
  • Shallot
  • Mustard
  • Red Wine
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • Bouquet Garni (Thyme, Parsley, Sage)
  • Black Pepper
  • Water

What You Do

Heat a heavy iron skillet, pat the meat dry with kitchen paper, add butter to the pan and fry until golden-brown. Reduce the heat and remove the meat from the pan. Add the sliced bacon and fry until golden. Add the shallot and glaze. Return the meat to the pan, add red wine, some water, mustard, bay leaves, bouquet garni and crushed black pepper. Allow to simmer for 6+ hours. You could close the pan with a lid. We prefer to cook it without a lid. The meat will take longer to become tender and soft. Our impression is that a stew prepared in a skillet without a lid is more moist. In all cases check the pan every 30 minutes, turn the meat and add water if required.
You could reduce the jus or turn it into a sauce, but you could also keep it as is.

What You Need – Beet Root Salad

  • One Beet Root
  • Excellent Olive Oil
  • White Wine Vinegar
  • Shallot
  • Black Pepper

What You Do – Beet Root Salad

The day before wash the beetroot and wrap in aluminium foil. Leave in the oven on 180° Celsius or 355° Fahrenheit for 45 – 60 minutes depending on the size. Cool and store in the refrigerator.
The next day peel the beet root and use a vegetable slicer (or mandoline) to make ridges. This will not only make the dish look more inviting, it will also enhance the taste given there is more coated surface and more air when chewing it. Make a simply, relatively acidic dressing with olive oil and vinegar. Finely chop the shallot and add to the dressing. Test a small slice of beet with the dressing and adjust when necessary. Perhaps some fresh black pepper? If you’re happy with the combination, toss the slices with the dressing making sure everything is nicely coated.

Classic Beef Stew ©cadwu
Classic Beef Stew in the pan ©cadwu

Ragù Napoletano

17 October 2022

Ragù Napoletano is all about beef and tomatoes. Combining these two creates umami, one of the five tastes, because the tomatoes contain amino acid glutamate and the beef inosinate. 
Whereas Ragù Bolognese is made with finely chopped meat, Ragù Napoletano is prepared with whole cuts of beef, seasoned and rolled up. Best is to use Blade Steak (or Top Blade), Rump Cap or Top Rump. Our butcher suggested using Knuckle Side Roast (or Knuckle Plate Muscle) which is rather lean so a touch dry after simmering for many hours. On the other hand, it kept its structure and flavours very well. Best is to ask your butcher for advice.
Many recipes suggest adding pork ribs to the dish, but we wanted to focus on the combination of beef and tomato. We did however add a bit of fatty bacon.
Tomato-wise you need lots of tomatoes: fresh ones, passata, puree and/or canned.
Best to prepare one day ahead.

Wine Pairing

A red, full bodied wine from Italy made with Sangiovese grapes will be a great accompaniment for both the starter and the main dish. We opened a bottle of Les Petits Rigolos, a red wine from the Tolosan region in south western France made with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. A round wine with notes of strawberry and blackcurrant. A touch spicy, which worked very well with the rich flavours of the Ragù Napoletano.

What You Need

  • For the Beef
    • 2 slices of Beef
    • Parmesan Cheese
    • Raisins
    • Fresh Parsley
    • Fresh Oregano
    • 1 small Garlic Clove
    • Optional: Pine Nuts
    • Olive Oil
  • For the Sauce
    • Small Onion or Shallot
    • Olive Oil
    • Bacon (or better: Lardo)
    • 250 ml of White Wine
    • Fresh Tomatoes
    • Tomato puree
    • ½ can of Tomatoes
    • Passata
  • For the Starter
    • Rigatoni
    • Parmesan Cheese
  • For the Main Course
    • Vegetables

What You Do

Soak the raisins in water for an hour. Drain. Chop parsley, oregano, raisins and garlic. In a bowl, combine raisins, garlic, oregano, parsley and freshly grated cheese. Flatten the meat if it’s difficult to roll up. Scatter the mixture over the meat, roll the meat up and tie with two strings of kitchen twine.
If using fresh tomatoes, peel and seed them. Chop coarsely. Chop the onion and slice the bacon. Heat a large saucepan, add olive oil, add onion and bacon. Leave on low heat for some 10 minutes or until the onion is glazed. Add the two rolls and fry them on all sides until evenly golden brown. Take you time to do this. Add the wine, let the alcohol evaporate and reduce. Add the tomatoes, the passata and the puree. Leave the stew on low heat and turn the meat occasionally. This stage is about stewing the meat as gently as possible and reducing the sauce. If you feel it’s going too fast, then put a lid on the pan, but only partially.
Once the meat is ready (this may take 4+ hours) remove the meat from the sauce, keep it warm (an oven at 50 °C or 120 °F will be perfect) and allow the sauce to reduce even more, as slowly as possible. Wait for the sauce to become dark and shiny.
For the first course: serve the sauce with pasta and freshly grated Parmesan cheese (we used Rigatoni because of the ridges).
For the second course: warm the meat in the remaining sauce, slice it and serve with sauce and vegetables.

PS

We would probably be kicked out of Naples (and Italy) with our version of Ragù Napoletano (oregano? French wine?). It is, however, a very tasty two course meal with lots of umami, as expected.

Ragù Napoletano - starter ©cadwu
Ragù Napoletano - main course ©cadwu

Umami

13 October 2022

Sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami are the five basic tastes. The term umami originates in Japan; it’s probably close to savoury. Recognizing sweet or bitter is something we learn as a child, recognizing umami is not something we have learned and that’s perhaps why some people in the past argued that umami is not a taste in its own right. It’s now clear that we have taste receptors that respond to the components that make umami.

Science

Danish professor emeritus in biophysics at the University of Southern Denmark, Ole G. Mouritsen, writes about the gastronomical, historical, scientific and cultural aspects of umami in his book Umami: Unlocking the Secrets of the Fifth Taste (available via your local bookstore or the well-known channels for approximately 40 US$). He also published cookbooks, for instance about seaweeds. Several scientific studies were conducted, trying to unravel the secrets of umami. One of the findings is that umami is the result of two components: glutamate and nucleotide. Bringing them together creates synergy and the umami taste is amplified.

Three Examples

Classic Japanese dashi is a combination of kombu (seaweed) and katsuobushi (bonito flakes). Kombu contains amino acid glutamate and Katsuobushi contains nucleotides inosinate and guanylate. Together they create a synergy, and the result is the clear taste of umami in dashi.
Same story for oysters and champagne. The oysters contain both glutamate and nucleotides (meaning that they are full of umami) and the champagne, due to the way it’s produced, contains glutamate, making oysters and champagne into a very tasty, umami rich combination.
Also the same story for tomatoes (amino acid glutamate) and beef (inosinate). Combining them should create the beautiful synergy of umami.

Ragù

Enough chemistry for one day. We decided to prepare Ragù Napoletano. It is one of the great dishes of Italy, or to be more precise of Campania. It is a combination of rolled up well marbled beef (rump cap, rump tail), an intense tomato sauce and hours of careful slow cooking and reducing. 
The result is a two-course meal: the sauce is served with pasta as a starter and the sliced meat with some sauce and vegetables as a main. 
Will you able to taste the umami? The answer is yes, absolutely, especially when you prepare the dish one or two days ahead.

Recipe for Ragù Napoletano in our next post.

Ragù Napoletano - starter ©cadwu
Ragù Napoletano - main course ©cadwu

Warm Tapenade

19 September 2022

On one of the last, warm, long evenings of this summer we wanted to enjoy something with lots of flavours and depth, but we didn’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen. Then we remembered a tapenade like mixture that worked nicely with monkfish. Why not combine it with excellent beef? The result was what we hoped for: lots of flavours and we only needed 15 minutes to prepare it.

Wine Pairing

Enjoy with a glass of full-bodied red wine, for instance Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon or Malbec. The tannins of such a wine will combine very well with the depth and richness of the tapenade and the beef.

We enjoyed a glass of Les Terrasses Occitanes Fitou produced by Mont Tauch from the Languedoc region in France, made with Grenache, Carignan and Syrah grapes. A not too complex, full bodied dry wine with aromas of red fruit and a lasting taste.

What You Need

  • 150 grams of Excellent Beef (Sirloin, Bavette)
  • For the Tapenade:
    • Shallot
    • Garlic
    • Black Olives
    • Capers
    • Thyme
    • Rosemary (optional)
    • Anchovies
    • Olive Oil

What You Do

Let the beef rest on a plate until it reaches room temperature. This could take an hour. Chop the shallot and the garlic, halve the black olives and remove the thyme leaves from the stalk. If using fresh rosemary, make sure to chop the leaves. Dry the capers with kitchen paper. Mash the anchovies with a fork until you have a paste-like substance. Warm a pan, add some olive oil and glaze the onions. After a few minutes add the garlic. Add the olives, the thyme, the capers and the anchovies. The result should be a rather chunky, rich tapenade.
Add olive oil to a hot skillet and quickly fry the beef. Leave to rest for a few minutes before serving with the warm tapenade. Add some black pepper.

PS

Not using anchovies is not an option. They bring umami and saltiness to the tapenade. One fillet is enough to have the right result.

Beef with Warm Tapenade ©cadwu
Beef with Warm Tapenade ©cadwu

Bay Bolete

25 November 2020

What’s In A Name?

We are all familiar with the white (button) mushroom, also known as Champignon de Paris. The Chestnut Mushroom is the same mushroom, just with a light brown, chestnut coloured cap. Its taste and texture are more intense compared to the classic white mushroom.
A Chestnut Bolete is a different kind of mushroom. It is small, chestnut coloured when young and beige when older. The German name of the Chestnut Bolete refers to rabbits, the Dutch name to cinnamon and the French name to chestnuts.
The overall colour of a Bay Bolete is brown and its cap is bay, the reddish brown colour of many horses. Or is it chestnut? In German and Dutch the name of the Bay Bolete refers to chestnuts; in French it refers to bay. The official name of the Bay Bolete is Imleria badia, but also Boletus Badius because it’s related to Boletus Edulis, also known as cèpes or Porcini.

Let’s talk about flavours and aromas, that’s probably more interesting. Bay Boletes are as tasty as cèpes. The texture is a bit softer and the mushroom itself more moist. It’s actually a very common mushroom in Europe, China, Mexico and North America. Sadly, this very tasty, not expensive bolete is hard to find in shops and on markets. So if you see them, buy them immediately.
Following the recipe for Cèpes à la Bordelaise is a good idea.

Wine Pairing

Enjoy with a glass of medium bodied red wine with aromas like berries and plums, for instance a Beaujolais Côte de Brouilly. It’s such a pity that the appreciation of Beaujolais wine is dominated by the (faded) popularity of Beaujolais Primeur and the idea that Beaujolais is a simple and light wine. It’s not. When you have the opportunity, taste a glass of Régnié, Morgon or one of the other 10 crus of the Beaujolais. Welcome to the divers and exciting world of Beaujolais wines!

What You Need

  • 200 gram of Bay Boletes
  • Shallot
  • Red Meat (Deer in our case)
  • Jerusalem Artichokes
  • Chicken Stock
  • Olive Oil
  • White and Black Pepper
  • Excellent Olive Oil

What You Do

Clean the Jerusalem artichokes and cook them for 10 minutes or so until tender. Mash with a fork or spoon and pass through a sieve. Don’t use a blender, unless you enjoy eating starch. Cool and set aside.
Clean the bay boletes with kitchen paper and slice them (not too thin). Chop the shallot. Add olive oil to a relatively hot heavy iron skillet. Reduce the heat and fry the boletes for 10 minutes. Add the chopped shallot. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Stir and add fresh black pepper.
In parallel fry the meat very quickly in a hot skillet and let rest for 10 minutes. Warm the purée of Jerusalem artichoke, add a tablespoon of chicken stock, some white pepper and a drizzle of excellent olive oil. Mix with a spoon. Serve on a hot plate.

Bay Boletes with Deer and Jerusalem Artichoke Puree ©cadwu
Fresh Bay Boletes ©cadwu
Sliced Bay Boletes ©cadwu

Carbonade à la Flamande (Flemish Beef Stew)

25 November 2018

This is a true classic, so many will claim to have the one and only original recipe. This dish is all about beef, onions and brown Belgian beer. Herbs like parsley and bay leaf, spices like nutmeg plus mustard and cider vinegar. Definitely not bacon, stock, prunes and garlic. Maybe some brown sugar if you prefer a sweet touch to the dish.
Given it’s a true classic many traditional restaurants in Belgium (or better said Flanders) will have this on the menu. Try it with some bread and a glass of brown Beer, preferably draught.
We serve the stew with two vegetables: celeriac and green beans. You could also go for mashed potatoes or fries, but balancing the rich stew with vegetables and bread is (we think) a much healthier idea.
And typical for a good stew: make it a day in advance.
Don’t worry if you made too much, the stew will keep for months in the freezer.

Wine Pairing

If you go for a glass of red wine, make sure it is full-bodied and rich, because the stew is really hearty. Bordeaux is a good choice. We drank a glass of Chateau Beaulieu, Cotes de Bourg. It is a wine with lots of dark fruit and a touch of oak. The wine is a blend of the traditional Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc plus 10% Malbec.

What You Need (for 4 persons)

  • 1 kilo of excellent, fat, marbled Beef
  • 4-6 large White Onions
  • Olive oil
  • Butter
  • 1 tablespoon of all purpose Flour
  • Nutmeg
  • 2 bottles (33 cl) of Belgian Brown Beer (we prefer Westmalle)
  • Bouquet garni, consisting of Thyme, Bay Leaf and Parsley
  • Cider Vinegar
  • Slice of Bread
  • Mustard

What To Do

Start by slicing the meat. Don’t make the cubes too small; they will shrink during the cooking process. Heat butter and olive oil in a large pan and start frying the meat. You probably will have to do this in 2 or 3 batches. Make sure the meat is nicely colored. Add some more olive oil and caramelize the sliced onions. Again, not too thin, they should be visible in the stew. Now add the flour and coat the onions and the beef. Add nutmeg, the beer, the cider vinegar and the bouquet. Close the pan and keep on a low heat for 3 to 4 hours. Check and stir every hour.
Check the meat and add one slice of bread (not the crust). Add a nice spoon of French mustard. Leave to simmer for another hour.
By now the bread will be dissolved. Stir and check the meat. If okay, then remove the meat from the pan and reduce the sauce. Discard the bouquet. Transfer the meat back into the pan, reheat, then cool and transfer to the refrigerator until the next day.
Reheat slowly and serve with Celeriac and Beans.

PS How to Prepare Celeriac?

Good question! Clean the celeriac and cut in cubes. Transfer to a pan with some water and one or two generous slices of lemon. One or two you ask? Well, the answer depends on the size of your celeriac and the acidity of the lemon. If in doubt, then go for one slice. Cook the celeriac until nearly done. Remove the water and the lemon. Now add (single) cream to the pan. Keep on a low heat for 10 minutes. The celeriac will absorb some of the cream. Transfer the mixture to the blender and create a smooth puree. Serve with nutmeg.

PS How to Cook Green Beans?

Short is the only answer. Serve with excellent olive oil. Normally we would add some nutmeg, but given it’s already on the celeriac and in the stew you may want to skip it. Olive oil is essential to coat the beans and make them nuttier. Butter will also coat them, but it is much more mouth filming and the butter will not emphasize the nuttiness of the beans.

Ingredients of Classic Stew A La Flamande © cadwu
Ingredients of Classic Stew A La Flamande © cadwu
Classic Stew A La Flamande ready to stew © cadwu
Classic Stew A La Flamande ready to stew © cadwu
Westmalle Brown Dubble Trappist © Westmalle
Westmalle Brown Dubble Trappist © Westmalle
Carbonnade à la Flamande © cadwu
Carbonnade à la Flamande © cadwu

Bay Boletes with Brussels Sprouts and Tenderloin

21 October 2018

Bay Bolete

The Bay Bolete is a tasty, fairly common mushroom. Its cap is chestnut (bay) brown. They are easy to find under pines and other conifers in Europe and North America (but we’re not mushroom hunters) and unfortunately not so easy to find on the market. The main season for the Bay Bolete is late summer and autumn. Bay Boletes are rarely infested with maggots. They dry very well.
When comparing the taste of Bay Boletes and Cepes we think that Cepes have a more powerful and complex taste whereas Bay Boletes are nuttier.

We remember Brussels sprouts from our youth: over- cooked, greyish, soggy and oh-that-smell (it’s sulphur actually)! Once in a blue moon we take a trip down memory lane and cook them this way, but we prefer a more modern approach, for instance steamed and served with a drizzle of olive oil. Nutmeg is a must by the way.

Wine

We very much enjoyed a glass of Portuguese Segredos de São Miguel, a full-bodied, warm red wine, made from grapes such as Alicante Bouschet, Aragonez, Touriga Nacional and Trincadeira. You will taste lots of fruit and a touch of toast. A juicy wine with nice acidity and smooth tannins. Fresh and vigorous finish.

You could also go for a Malbec. Taste wise the mushrooms and the sprouts are very powerful, so you’re looking for a wine that will clearly support the beef and will also combine with the nuttiness of the mushrooms and the touch of bitterness of the sprouts.

Here is what you need

  • Boletes
    • 150 grams of Bay Boletes
    • Olive Oil
    • Butter
    • One glove of Fresh Garlic
    • Parsley
  • Brussels Sprouts
    • 200 grams of Brussels Sprouts
    • Butter
    • Nutmeg
  • 150 grams of excellent Beef (Tenderloin is best in this case)
  • Black Pepper

Let’s Start Cooking

We begin with the Brussels sprouts: clean them (don’t cut in half as so many do nowadays) and cook or steam them until they are nearly okay. Set aside and let cool. Clean the mushrooms with a brush and/or kitchen paper. Slice (not too thin). Heat a skillet, add olive oil and butter. Add the sliced mushrooms and fry gently over medium heat. In parallel warm a pan with some butter and add the sprouts. The idea is to coat them with butter and warm them, giving them just the cuisson you prefer. Heat a second skillet with olive oil and butter, fry the beef and let rest for 5 minutes or so in aluminum foil. Season the sprouts with some nutmeg. Back to the mushrooms: add chopped garlic to the pan. Wait a few minutes and then add chopped parsley. You could make a jus in the skillet you used for the beef. Serve on a hot plate with extra nutmeg and black pepper.

Bay Boletes © cadwu
Bay Boletes with Brussels Sprouts and Beef © cadwu