Bloody Mary Beef with Creamy Mash and Dressed Kale

Every now and then I have a weekend with pretty much nothing planned and, on the rare occasion this occurs, I love to cook something low and slow for hours on end until it's falling apart, melting in the mouth and filling the house with gorgeous aromas.

This recipe is inspired by a Jamie Oliver programme I watched about 4 years ago called Festive Feasts, in which he covered a beef brisket in large quantities of Bloody Mary and let it cook away for the best part of 6 hours. I used my own version of the classic cocktail but aside from that I followed Jamie's lead and I can honestly say the results were magnificent. The most tender beef I've ever had coated in a rich, tomato-y sauce subtly flavoured with vodka, brandy and Worcestershire sauce and served alongside creamy mashed potatoes with a hit of horseradish and simply dressed kale – what's not to love!

Bloody Mary Beef with Creamy Mash and Dressed Kale
Serves 6-8

1kg piece of beef brisket 
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 
olive oil 
1 head of celery 
6 small red onions
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary 
2 bay leaves 

Bloody Mary mix:
700g jar of passata 
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 
few drops of hot sauce 
3 tbsp vodka 
1 tbsp brandy

Mash and Kale:
1.6 kg Maris Piper potatoes
50g butter
1-2 tbsp jarred grated horseradish
semi-skimmed milk
400g curly kale
extra virgin olive oil 

Preheat the oven to 130ºC/250ºF/gas ½. Place a large casserole pan over a medium heat to get hot. Season the brisket all over with salt and pepper, then add to the hot pan with a splash of olive oil and cook for about 10 minutes, or until nicely browned all over. Set aside.

Meanwhile, chop the celery into 5cm chunks, then peel and quarter the onions. Add the chopped veg to the pan, reduce the heat to low and cook gently for 5 to 10 minutes, or until slightly softened. Combine all of the Bloody Mary ingredients in a large jug, then pour into the pan with 250ml cold water and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Add the beef back to the pan and throw in the rosemary and bay leaves, then bring everything to the boil. Take the pan off the heat and cover with a a damp piece of greaseproof paper and the lid. Cook in the oven for 5 to 6 hours, or until the beef is tender and falling apart. 

When there’s about 20 minutes to go, peel and roughly chop the potatoes and cook in a pan of boiling salted water for 15 minutes, or until tender. Remove any tough stalks from the curly kale, put into a pan of boiling water for 2 minutes, or until tender, then drain, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little olive oil. Drain the potatoes in a colander and leave to steam dry, then return to the pan and mash well with the butter, horseradish and a splash of milk, then season to taste. Pull the beef apart with two forks, toss through the Bloody Mary sauce (discarding the herbs) and serve with the mash and kale.

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