BRAISED BEEF WITH ANCHOVY TOASTS

Braised beef with anchovy toasts image

This slow-cooked dish makes a cheaper cut of beef skirt tender and melt-in-the-mouth. It's freezable too so great for a simple, budget dinner party

Provided by Good Food team

Categories Dinner

Time 2h30m

Number Of Ingredients 18

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion , finely chopped
4 garlic cloves , finely chopped
3 bay leaves
750ml bottle red wine
500ml beef stock
2 tsp caster sugar
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 ½kg piece lean beef skirt , cut into large chunks
6 anchovies in oil, chopped
400g shallots , peeled
500g Chantenay carrots , stalk ends trimmed
140g Kalamata olives
6 anchovies in oil
100g unsalted butter
3 tbsp finely chopped parsley , plus extra to serve
1 French stick sliced, to serve

Steps:

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based casserole dish and fry the onion for 5 mins. Stir in the garlic and bay leaves and fry for 5 mins more.
Pour in the wine, stock and sugar. Mix the flour with the tomato purée and 3 tbsp water. Tip into the wine mixture and stir continuously until thickened. Then add the meat and anchovies, cover and leave to simmer for 1 hr.
Stir in the shallots, carrots and olives. Cover and simmer for 1 hr more until everything is tender. Meanwhile, for the anchovy toasts, grind the anchovy fillets using a pestle and mortar until smooth (or very finely chop), then beat into the butter with the parsley and lots of black pepper. If freezing, spoon the stew into a container or freezer bag. Repeat with the anchovy butter. To defrost, put both in the fridge to thaw overnight, then reheat the stew in a pan.
To serve, grill the slices of French bread until lightly toasted, then spread with the anchovy butter. Serve on top of the beef stew and scatter with parsley.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 740 calories, Fat 37 grams fat, SaturatedFat 15 grams saturated fat, Carbohydrate 29 grams carbohydrates, Sugar 14 grams sugar, Fiber 5 grams fiber, Protein 65 grams protein, Sodium 3.04 milligram of sodium