Starting off on a good note... Oxtail ...

I decided to start this blog when a couple of friends of mine kept insisting I save morsels or share my recipes with them. I like to find a recipe, gather ingredients and make a night of it. It can be a meal I've enjoyed, or something someone else made that I tried somewhere or just a recipe that looks good. I cook like this during winter mostly.. and when I'm trying to save money.. makes for cheaper good meals .. reallllly good meals, and an extra bit of satisfaction in them.

tonight was Oxtail and Chorizo Ragu on Black Olive Pappardelle. A blend of recipes I found after fond memories of a meal I had in an Auckland restaurant more than 10 years ago, and the lack of regular pappardelle that made this dish a bit extra than intended.

2kg Oxtail
2 glasses of a robust red wine (something you would drink, not too cheap)
2 sprigs rosemary
1 400g can of crushed tomatos
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 onion chopped
1 stick of celery chopped
1.5 teaspoons of smoked paprika
500ml beef stock
1 chorizo sliced
zest of half an orange
olive oil
pappardelle (any flavour you find, regular is good)
Fresh Parmesan

Soak oxtail in cold salted water for approx. 2 hours.

Pre-heat oven to 170c.

Drain Oxtail and put in large pot of fresh water and boil then simmer for 10-15 mins.. remove any scum that surfaces, drain and pat dry. Place in casserole dish.

In a large skillet over a high heat, pour a generous amount of olive oil and brown the oxtail, remove from pan and put in casserole dish.
Add chopped garlic, onion, chorizo then the carrot and celery. Fry till onion is a little caramelised. Add tomatos, paprika, orange zest, half the wine, stir and pour into casserole dish. Add remaining wine and beef stock. Add to casserole dish and bake in oven for 3 - 4 hours till meat is falling off bones.

Remove oxtail and seperate meat from bone. This is a little messy, unless you have time to cool first. Discard rosemary twigs and bay leaves and bones. Put meat back in sauce, and transfer to saucepan or put your dish onto a hotplate, over medium heat to thicken, add 2 tbsp of cornflour mixed in 2 tbsp cold water to thicken if desired.

Cook pasta in boiling salted water. Drain and toss with some olive oil.

Add sauce to pasta and toss well. Serve with a generous serve of freshly grated parmesan and your favourite red wine. Use a good sourdough bread to mop up remaining sauce if desire - the one in my picture is a spinach/feta sourdough I get from the farmers market near my house.

I try to use as much organic or local produce as possible, I try to be as environmental and sustainable in my cooking as possible.