Greek beef stew with roasted shallots

Tamara West

It’s not very Greek, but I like to serve this stew with a French baguette smeared with roasted shallots. Orzo is a more usual accompaniment. Having canned tomatoes in juice in the pantry is a must for me as they add good flavour. You can use water rather than beef stock and, if you don’t have shallots, finely slice an onion and add to the marinade. The warm spices in this recipe are perfect for the cooler weather ahead.

Stew

1 can	Chopped tomatoes, approx 400g
½ cup	Red wine vinegar
½ cup	Beef stock
¼ cup	Olive oil
6 cloves	Garlic
½ stick	Cinnamon
1	Orange, rind pared, reserve 1/2 for garnish
1 Tbsp	Liquid honey
1	Bay leaf
1 tsp	Cumin seeds, toasted and ground
¼ tsp	Ground ginger
¼ tsp	Allspice, ground
¼ tsp	Nutmeg, freshly grated
750 g	Beef casserole steak, such as cross-cut blade (Main)

Shallots

12 large	Shallots, skin on
3 Tbsp	Olive oil
2 sprigs	Thyme

Directions

Stew

1. In a large non-metallic bowl place tomatoes, vinegar, stock, oil, garlic, cinnamon stick, ½ pared rind of orange, honey, bay leaf, and spices.
2. Cut casserole beef into 2.5cm pieces and place in the bowl. Stir well, cover and place in refrigerator overnight to marinate.
3. Heat oven to 160C.
4. Place beef with marinade in a casserole dish and cook for 2½-3 hours until meat is very tender and almost falling apart.
5. Meanwhile, pare the remainder of the orange rind, shred and blanch in boiling water for 30 seconds. Refresh under cold water and dry on kitchen paper. Serve Greek beef stew garnished with orange shreds and roasted shallots (see recipe below).

Roasted shallots in their skin

1. Make a deep cut along the length of each shallot and place in a roasting dish.
2. Drizzle over olive oil and sprinkle with thyme. Place in the oven with the stew and roast for at least 1 hour until soft. When cool enough to handle, squeeze the soft onion flesh from their skins and serve on or alongside the stew.
3. Alternatively, roast at 190C for 45 minutes.