Beef Shank Pot-au-feu

 

We were out in search for cupcakes when we stumbled upon what could possibly be our favorite butcher shop. We got our cupcakes first, and then made a U-turn and headed two blocks south to where we first saw the butcher shop when we were on our way to fulfill our cupcake mission. The Butcher & Larder is a winner. They have everything we could ever want from pork belly to roasted beef/lamb/pork bones to duck meat. It doesn't even smell like a butcher shop. Among other things, we walked out with two beautiful pieces of beef shank. And then we had a plan. Preparing for that night's dinner was in order. Armed with these beautiful pieces of meat, we headed to our favorite local grocer (the kind where it has been handed down to the next generation and we can buy a whole box of produce and only get charged $15...what?!)

We learned a new root vegetable that day. Rutabaga (roo-tuh-bay-guh). They were in a box next to the turnips and our grocer told us that rutabagas are like turnips. We added it to our produce box. Later we looked it up on Wikipedia and found out that rutabagas are swedish turnips. When cooked, the color, texture, and taste reminded us of sweet potatoes. The rutabaga is on the left most side of the picture below.

I don't think we could have been happier with how well marbled the beef shanks were as shown in the picture below. The marbling on the beef made the meat so much more tender and soft when biting into it. Beef shanks are probably not the most popular cut of meat for people to buy as the meat is thought to be tough but if stewed and simmered for a few hours it will turn out beautifully.

 

Ingredients

2 lbs beef shanks

1 medium white onion

1 large carrot

1 medium turnip

1 medium rutabaga

2 medium Russet potatoes

2 large stalks of leek

2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorn

Salt to taste

Water

Method
1. Peel and cut into chunks the onion, carrot, turnip, rutabaga, and potatoes. Using only the white and light green parts of the leeks, cut into 2-inch lengths.

2. In a large pot, combine the onion and half the carrot and leeks. Add in the beef shanks and throw in the thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Sprinkle salt over the ingredients (you can always add more salt later). Fill the pot with water until it covers the ingredients. Bring to boil under high heat and then let simmer under low heat for about 2 hours.

3. Add the remaining carrot and leeks along with the turnip and rutabaga into the pot. Continue to simmer under low heat for about 45 minutes. Add in the potatoes and continue to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until tender. If needed, season with a little bit more salt.

4. Skim the fat or oil off the broth before serving. Dish out into serving bowls.

Hawaiian Oxtail Soup

Oxtails make sudden appearances at grocery stores when I least expect them too. I made a trip to Whole Foods once in search of oxtails and thinking that Ahhh surely Whole Foods has them and came home with nothing except maybe with a tinge of disappointment. Lo and behold, the next day during a trip to our local Jewel store for another purpose altogether, there were oxtails displayed at the meat section. Of course I grabbed them right away even if it meant that they had to stay in our freezer for awhile before I got a chance to cook them since making oxtail soup does take awhile. It's not the preparation that takes time but rather the simmering which takes hours which isn't necessarily a bad thing actually since that is perfect opportunity to work on other things while the pot is sitting on the stove.

Unlike other rich and hearty oxtail stews that I've come to know, this Hawaiian oxtail soup comes in a clear light broth. Despite the broth being clear and seemingly light, the aromatic flavors are present and intensified from several hours of simmering. The meat becomes so tender it readily falls off the bone. It's welcoming when you need a non-heavy yet fulfilling dish. We ate it with steaming white rice and a side of sliced chili peppers.

Adapted from Simply Recipes:

Ingredients
2 - 2 1/2 lbs oxtails
1 strip dried orange peel
2 star anise
2-inch piece of fresh ginger, thinly sliced
Salt to taste
1/2 cup shelled, skinned, and raw peanuts (or roasted unsalted peanuts)
1/2 teaspoon white peppercorns
Bunch of fresh mustard greens, chopped

Garnishes
Cilantro, chopped
Scallions, chopped

Method
1. In a large pot, fill with water until just covering the oxtails and bring to boil. Parboil for 30 minutes. Drain water from the pot and rinse oxtails in cold water. Trim excess fat from oxtails.

2. Return the oxtails to the pot and fill water until the oxtails are fully covered with water by about an inch. Add orange peel, star anise, ginger slices, white peppercorns, and salt. You can always add more salt later to taste. Cover the pot and when water comes to boil, bring it down to a simmer for one hour. Add the peanuts and continue to simmer for 2-3 hours  until meat is tender.

3. Skim off the fat from the soup. If you plan on letting the soup sit overnight in the fridge (which I highly recommend as it will intensify the flavors), turn off the heat at this point and wait to skim off the fat until the next morning as the fat will solidify thereby making it easier to remove the fat.

4. Bring the soup to a simmer and add in the chopped mustard greens. Cook for several minutes until the mustard greens are tender.

5. Dish out into bowls and top with a handful of chopped cilantro and scallions.