Spanish Beef Stew

I’ve used beef cheeks in the video. In case you’re wondering yes it is the meat from the actual cheeks of the cow – one of my favourite cuts for slow cooking. But please feel free to use your favourite ‘stewing’ cuts such as chuck or blade.

serves 4

1kg (2lb) beef stewing steak, chopped into large chunks
2 red onions, peeled & diced
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 -2 cups red wine
2 tablespoons smoked paprika

1. Place beef, onions, tomato paste, wine and paprika in a slow cooker or oven proof dish.

2. For the slow cooker, cover and cook on auto for 10-11 hours or until beef is meltingly tender.

3. For the oven, add an extra cup of wine, cover and bake at 120C (250F) for 4-6 hours or until beef is meltingly tender. Add in a little water if the beef starts to dry out.

4. Taste, season and serve hot.

prepare ahead?

Absolutely! Like all slow cooked dishes, this will improve with a little time sitting in the fridge.

leftover potential

Great! Will keep in the fridge for a week or more.

variations for fun

vegan / vegetarian – replace beef cheeks with 4 large field mushrooms.

olives – serve with a handful of green olives scattered over the top.

pork – replace beef with 1kg (2lb) pork neck or pork shoulder.

short on time – increase the oven temp to 180C (350F) and reduce the cooking time to about 2 hours.

problem solving guide

can’t find beef cheeks? – no problem. Just substitute in chuck or stewing steak chopped into large chunks. Smaller pieces of meat will cook more quickly than large cheeks.

no smoked paprika?– skip the smoked paprika or use a little regular paprika instead. Two teaspoons of cayenne pepper would work instead.

tough meat -this means you haven’t cooked your meat for long enough. If you can, best to pop back in the slow cooker or oven for at least another half hour or longer.

bland – make sure you’re generous with the salt. A little more tomato paste may help as well.

watery sauce – if your sauce hasn’t reduced down enough, either pop in the oven with the lid off for half an hour or so, or remove the beef and simmer, uncovered in the slow cooker on high for about an hour. An additional tablespoon of tomato paste may help things.

bitter flavours – either your smoked paprika is to blame or you’ve burnt some of the dish. A difficult one to fix but adding a little butter or olive oil may mellow out any bitterness.

dry – if you’re cooking in the oven it can be easy for the dish to dry out Best to keep an eye on it and add a little water if you think it’s looking too dry.

onion crunchy – in the slow cooker, onions can take longer to cook than the meat. I don’t worry if they’re a little bit crunchy but if it bothers you, remove the meat and simmer the sauce for 1/2 an hour or until the onions are tender. Return the meat to the pan and reheat before serving.