Beefandprunetagine Recipes

BEEF TAGINE

Steps:

• Mix all the spice rub ingredients together in a small bowl with a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper.
• Put the beef into a large bowl, massage it with the spice rub, then cover with clingfilm and place in the fridge for a couple of hours, preferably overnight.
• When you're ready to cook, peel and finely chop the onion, and pick the coriander leaves, finely chopping the stalks.
• Heat a generous lug of oil in a tagine or casserole pan over a medium heat, add the meat and fry for 5 minutes to seal. Add the onion and coriander stalks and fry for a further 5 minutes.
• Drain and tip in the chickpeas, followed by the tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon, then pour in 400ml of stock and stir well. Bring to the boil, then cover and reduce to a low heat for 1½ hours.
• Meanwhile, deseed and chop the squash into 5cm chunks, then destone and roughly tear the prunes. Toast the almonds in a dry frying pan until lightly golden, then tip into a bowl.
• When the time's up, add the squash, prunes and remaining stock. Give everything a gentle stir, then pop the lid back on and continue cooking for another 1½ hours. Keep an eye on it, adding splashes of water, if needed.
• At this stage, remove the lid and check the consistency. If it seems a bit too runny, simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, more with the lid off - the beef should be really tender and flaking apart now, so have a taste and season to taste.
• Scatter the coriander leaves over the tagine along with the toasted almonds. Serve with a big bowl of lightly seasoned couscous and dive in.

BEEF TAGINE

Steps:

• Serving suggestion: Lightly seasoned couscous.
• To make the spice rub: Mix the ras el hanout, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, paprika, salt, and black pepper together in a small bowl. Put the beef into a large bowl, massage it with the spice rub, then cover with plastic wrap or clingfilm and put into the refrigerator for a couple of hours-ideally overnight. That way the spices really penetrate and flavour the meat. When you're ready to cook, heat a generous lug of olive oil in a tagine or casserole-type pan and fry the meat over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the chopped onion and coriander (cilantro) stalks and fry for another 5 minutes. Tip in the chickpeas and tomatoes, then pour in 1 3/4 cups/400 ml stock and stir. Bring to the boil, then put the lid on the pan or cover with foil and reduce to a simmer for 1 1/2 hours. At this point add your squash, the prunes and the rest of the stock. Give everything a gentle stir, then pop the lid back on the pan and continue cooking for another 1 1/2 hours. Keep an eye on it and add a splash of water if it looks too dry. Once the time is up, take the lid off and check the consistency. If it seems a bit too runny, simmer for 5 to 10 minutes more with the lid off. The beef should be really tender and flaking apart now, so have a taste and season with a pinch or 2 of salt. Scatter the coriander (cilantro) leaves over the tagine along with the toasted almonds, then take it straight to the table with a big bowl of lightly seasoned couscous and dive in.

BEEF TAGINE}

Steps:

• In a bowl, mix the chunks of stewing beef with the Tagine Paste, set aside to marinate for an hour, or as long as possible - overnight if you have time. Drizzle the olive oil in the pan and fry the onions in a frying pan on a medium heat until golden, add the garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes. Remove the onions and garlic from the pan and fry the stewing beef for a few minutes, just until brown all over. Turn the heat down to the lowest possible setting. Take your casserole dish with a tight fitting lid (or tagine, if you have one) and put the sliced onions and garlic in the bottom. Sit your beef on top of the onion mix. Add your saffron (with water), beef stock and cinnamon stick to the pan. Bring to the boil and then turn down to a very gentle simmer for 1.5 hours. After 1.5 hours, add your chopped preserved lemon skin and apricots to the pan and stir to ensure they are covered with the liquid as much as possible. Simmer for a further ½ an hour. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if required. Serve the beef tagine over a bed of couscous, sprinkling some of the chopped coriander and flaked almonds or pistachios over the top of each portion.

BEEF AND PRUNE TAGINE

Steps:

• Put the butter and oil in a large saucepan.
• When the butter is melted, put in the spices, coriander and onion.
• Let fry for 30 seconds, then add the beef and stir well to coat.
• Cover the meat with a cup of water and the saffron mixture.
• The water should be just over halfway up the meat.
• Bring to the boil and then lower to a gentle simmer.
• Add half the prunes and cook for 1-1/2 hours until the meat becomes tender and juicy.
• Keep the pot mostly covered during this time -- the only time I lift the cover is for a few seconds if the heat builds too much and it starts to boil. You need to keep this dish at a very low simmer.
• Add remaining prunes along with the honey, salt and pepper.
• Simmer for another 30 minutes or until the meat is tender and the liquid has thickened and reduced.
• Serve with the sesame seeds and almonds on top.

BEEF WITH POTATO TAGINE

Steps:

• Mix the ingredients together for the spice mix, reserve a third of it for later use. Rub the remaining mix over the beef cubes.
• Note: Let the cubes sit in the fridge for at least 1 hour before cooking.
• Heat the oil over medium-low heat in a tagine. Brown the beef & onion for 7 minutes.
• Stir in the water, bouillon, tomato paste, 1/2 tsp spice mix, parsley & cilantro. Cover with the lid & cook for 30 minutes.
• Uncover the tagine, stir in the tomato & another cup of water if needed.
• Sprinkle the potato wedges with reserve spice mix. Place the potatoes on top of the meat then recover & cook for another hour.

SPICED BEEF WITH STOUT & PRUNES

Steps:

• Pat the beef dry using kitchen paper. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large flameproof casserole, and fry the beef in batches over a high heat until browned on all sides. Transfer the browned batches to a bowl using a slotted spoon as you continue frying the remainder.
• When all the meat is browned, heat another 1 tbsp oil in the casserole, and fry the onion for 12 mins until soft and pale golden. Stir in the allspice, cloves, cinnamon stick, juniper berries, and a generous grating of nutmeg.
• Pour in the stout and cook over a medium heat until it has reduced by half. Stir in the stock, carrots, sugar, bay leaves and some seasoning. Return the browned meat to the pan, and bring the mixture the boil. When it's boiling, immediately reduce the heat to low and cover. Cook for 1 hr 30 mins, stirring and checking the seasoning every so often. In the last 20 mins of cooking time, stir in the prunes (if you do this any sooner, the prunes will fall apart).
• Meanwhile, peel the baby onions and fry these in a small frying pan in the remaining oil over a medium-low heat until golden on the outside and soft in the middle (you may need to add a little stock or water to the pan to help them soften, if they're slightly bigger). The baby onions should be tender, but not falling apart. Stir these into the braise, check the seasoning again, and scatter over the chopped parsley before serving.