Beef Birmingham Recipes

Steps:

• For the marinade: Combine the garlic, bay leaves, carrots, celery, onions and wine in a large bowl or container. Add the beef; cover and let sit in the refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight. (This is a really important step: it makes a huge flavor difference.)
• For the stew: Remove the beef from the marinade. Strain the veggies and bay leaves from the marinade and discard. Reserve 2 cups of the marinade.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coat a large, wide pan or Dutch oven with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Sprinkle the beef with salt and toss with the flour; do not flour the beef until you're ready to brown it. Add the flour-coated beef to the hot pan, but be sure to not crowd the pan; you will need to work in four batches. Brown the meat well on all sides, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the pan to a baking sheet.
• After the first two batches, deglaze the pot with 1/2 cup of the reserved marinade, scraping up any browned bits. Drain the liquid into a small bowl. Add more olive oil to the pan to coat and cook the remaining two batches of meat. Add the meat to the baking sheet. Deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup marinade, scraping up any browned bits.
• Add the bacon and cook until it gets brown and crispy, about 5 minutes. Toss in the mushrooms, carrots, celery, garlic and onions, and season with salt. Cook until the mixture starts to soften and becomes very aromatic, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup marinade and deglaze the pan, stirring up any browned bits, 1 minute. Add the beef. Stir to combine and cook until the wine has reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Add enough of the beef stock to just cover the surface of the beef. Toss in the bay leaves and thyme bundle. Cover the pan, bring the liquid to a boil and put in the oven.
• Cook the beef for 2 hours. During the last hour of cooking time, add the potatoes. Cover the pan with the lid and put the stew back in the oven to cook for an additional hour.
• Remove the pot from the oven and skim off any excess grease from the surface of the stew. Garnish with the chives and serve with crusty bread to sop up all the sauce.

Steps:

• For the sauce, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pot. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes. Add the beef and lamb, and saute over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until it's no longer pink, crumbling it with the back of wooden spoon. Drain off any excess liquid, add the wine, and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the garlic, cinnamon, oregano, thyme, and cayenne, and continue cooking over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 40 to 45 minutes. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the bechamel, heat the milk and cream together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until simmering. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly for 2 minutes. Pour the warm milk and cream mixture into the butter and flour mixture, whisking constantly. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until smooth and thick. Add the nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Stir in 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of the tomato and meat sauce, and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Stir in the eggs and yogurt and set aside.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until al dente. Don't over-cook because the pasta will later be baked. Drain and set aside.
• Add the pasta to the meat and tomato sauce, and pour the mixture into a baking dish. Spread the bechamel evenly to cover the pasta and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake for 1 hour, until golden brown and bubbly. Set aside for 10 minutes and serve hot.

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onions; cook and stir until tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
• Cook and stir beef in the same skillet until browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Sprinkle flour, marjoram, thyme, and pepper over beef. Pour red wine and beef broth into the skillet; stir well. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beef is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stir onions into the skillet. Add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until mushrooms are tender and sauce is thick and dark brown, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Brown ground beef, onions and garlic in oil until beef is done.
• Add remaining ingredients, simmer uncovered till thick. (2 - 4 hours).

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 450. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan set over medium-high heat, until it is nearly smoking. Add the beef pieces in batches and brown well all over, approximately 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
• Add remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to pan set to medium heat. Add the onion, celery and carrots, and cook, stirring, for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for approximately 5 minutes more, until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent. Add sherry, scraping up the browned bits, and boil until it is thick and syrupy. Pour in the red wine, bring to a boil and reduce by 1/4. Remove from the heat.
• Arrange the beef in a Dutch oven or large oven-safe pot with a lid. Add the vegetables and their cooking liquid, along with enough warm stock to come three-quarters of the way up the sides of the meat. Add the thyme, parsley stems, bay leaves and dried mushrooms. Cover the pot.
• Place the beef in the oven, and reduce the heat to 310. Cook until the meat is very tender, approximately 2 hours. When the meat is done, transfer to a cutting board and let it rest, uncovered.
• Strain the braising liquid into a saucepan, pressing on the vegetables with the back of a spoon. Place the saucepan over very low heat and bring to a gentle simmer, skimming off the fat that rises to the top. Continue simmering and skimming until the liquid is slightly reduced and little fat remains, approximately 20 minutes.
• Put the beef back in the pot, add a little of the braising broth and warm gently over low heat.
• In a large sauté pan or Dutch oven set over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter. When it begins to foam, add the peppers, carrots, onion, leek and bay leaf, and cook for 2 minutes or until the onion and leek just begin to soften. Cover and cook over low heat for approximately 5 minutes, until tender.
• Add the rice and stir for 1 minute to coat. Add 1 ½ cups of broth and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, approximately 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in another pan, melt another tablespoon of butter set over medium-high heat. When it begins to foam, add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until they are soft and tender, in the case of chanterelles, approximately 5 minutes.
• Transfer the finished rice to a serving bowl, discard the bay leaf and stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and mushrooms. Season with thyme. Serve the meat over rice pirlau with more of the braising liquid spooned on top.