Try This Oxtail and Risotto Recipe

by | May 12, 2023 | Recipes

The ultimate gesture of affection –or seduction–is the home-cooked meal. Skip the so-called aphrodisiacs (oysters, chocolate-dipped strawberries); in other words, don’t serve her a plate of clichés. Opt for a dish you know she likes (you’ll show you’ve been listening), or woo her with this oxtail and risotto recipe from celebrated local chef Jackie Cameron’s book Jackie Cameron Cooks At Home. “Take this heart-warming, home-cooked oxtail, shred it and add to a luscious risotto – rich, robust flavours that excite all palates,” she says.

Oxtail

Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian

Ingredients
  

  • 60 g butter
  • 2 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 1 kg oxtail
  • 110 g cake flour
  • 1 med onion
  • 3 med carrots
  • 1 large leek
  • 1 stick celery
  • 3 large garlic cloves
  • 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
  • 2 medium tomatoes
  • 500 ml red wine
  • 2 l beef stock
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions
 

  • Heat a heavy-based pot.
  • Add butter and oil. Dust the oxtail with the flour seasoned with salt and pepper.
  • Sear the pieces, remove them from the pot and set aside. In the same pot, sauté the roughly chopped onion.
  • Add chopped carrots, leeks, celery, garlic, and rosemary when caramelised.
  • Cook veggies through.
  • Add tomatoes, 400ml red wine, 2 cups of stock and the oxtail pieces.
  • Simmer gently at a low heat.
  • Add more stock when this amount has reduced to just covering the meat, and continue simmering for eight hours, stirring occasionally.
  • You may need to use more stock.
  • Add the remaining 100ml red wine and allow to cool slightly, before removing meat from the bone, shredding it and setting it aside with the sauce ready for the risotto.
Keyword dinner, High-Protein, oxtail, protein, risotto

The Risotto

Course dinner, Main Course
Cuisine Italian

Ingredients
  

  • 60 g butter
  • ¼ cup sunflower oil
  • 2 large onions chopped
  • 2 large garlic cloves
  • 240 g risotto rice
  • 300 ml red wine heated
  • 1.5 l high-quality stock simmering

Instructions
 

  • Heat a heavy-based pot.
  • Add butter and oil, then sauté onions and garlic.
  • Add rice and stir to allow each grain to be coated with the oil.
  • Add the heated wine and stir.
  • Once the wine has been completely absorbed, start adding the simmering stock.
  • Add one ladle at a time, stirring continuously so the grains are evenly cooked.
  • You may not use all the liquid, or you might need more.
  • Three-quarters of the way through cooking the rice, add the shredded oxtail. At this stage, you can cook the dish fully, or wait and complete the cooking process just before serving, reheating and adding the last hot liquid.
  • The end result should be a slightly textured, creamy risotto, not stodgy or dense.
  • Serve with a tomato and onion relish, and pecorino or Parmesan shavings.
Keyword date night, dinner, italian, risotto

READ MORE: How To Make Seared Sirloin Served With Avocado and Mash

Jackie Cameron Cooks at Home shows the professional taking off her chef’s tunic and donning her home apron. With its generous invitation to good cooking that is easy and delectable this book is a must-have for every South African home cook. 

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