Braised beef cheek with star anise

"This cooks long and slow very gently for about two and a half to three hours or until the meat is meltingly tender and just pulls apart."

Credit: Barossa Gourmet with Justine Schofield

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  3 hours

• difficulty

  Easy

There are several ways to serve the beef. You can shred all the meat in the sauce and serve it on a bread roll, you can serve it on mashed potato or you can serve it on brown rice with some steamed greens - and lots of sauce, of course. 

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp (20 ml) olive oil
• 4 beef cheeks (1.2-1.6 kg), sinew removed
• ½ cup flour, for dusting
• 2 red onions, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, bruised and peeled
• 3 star anise
• ½ cup red wine
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 cup chicken stock or water
• Cooked brown rice and steamed Asian greens, to serve
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C.
2. In a heavy-based casserole, heat oil over high heat. Season the flour with salt and pepper, and then flour the beef. Shake off any excess, then sear for 1-2 minutes on each side, cooking in batches if necessary, until lightly browned. Remove and set aside. Turn the heat to medium and add the onion, garlic and star anise and cook for 3-4 minutes to soften. Add the red wine and reduce it by a third. Return the beef cheeks and then add the soy, sugar and stock.
3. Lay a piece of baking paper over the meat. Place the lid on and bake in the oven for 2.5-3 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender. If the sauce is a little watery, carefully remove the beef cheeks and bring to a boil for a few minutes to reduce.
4. Serve with brown rice and steamed greens.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

There are several ways to serve the beef. You can shred all the meat in the sauce and serve it on a bread roll, you can serve it on mashed potato or you can serve it on brown rice with some steamed greens - and lots of sauce, of course.