At The Paleo Diet, a freezer full of grass fed, organically grown beef offers a variety of cooking choices not always found at your local grocer. One of our favorite dishes, especially during the winter months, is a deliciously slow cooked oxtail stew. This cut comes from, you guessed it, the tail of the cow. The round bones of the tail contain enough meat to combine with fresh veggies and spices to make a Paleo comfort food that will take the chill off the winter freeze. Slow cook in a crock pot while you are out for the day and return to the delightful aromas awaiting you!
Ingredients:
2 packages oxtail (about 4 pounds)
2 tablespoons cracked black pepper
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion
4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
32 ounces unsalted beef broth
1 cup chopped celery
3 large carrots cut into bite-sized pieces
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
2 parsnips, peeled into bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
2 sprigs each fresh thyme and rosemary, stems removed
1 fresh sage leaf, finely chopped
1 6 ounce can unsalted tomato paste
3 whole bay leaves
1 cup Fresh, cilantro, parsley, chopped kale, or chopped mustard greens (Choose 1 or 2 based on your preference)
Rinse oxtails and pat dry. Sprinkle with fresh cracked pepper on both sides of each oxtail piece. In a large frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Brown each piece of meat for about 3-5 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and place in large slow cooker. In clean sauté pan, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat and saute onions and garlic until soft, about 5-10 minutes. Add to slow cooker, then pour beef broth into pot. Cook for 4-5 hours. Remove oxtail from the stew, remove meat from bones and return it to the pot. (We like to return both the bones and the meat to the pot, removing the bones just before serving.) Add carrots, celery, sweet potatoes and parsnips. In small bowl, mix caraway, thyme, rosemary, and sage. Mix spices into the stew. Add tomato paste and bay leaves, cover and cook on low heat for at least 3 more hours, until beef easily separates from the bones. Just before serving, add fresh greens of your choice.
