Spanish Braised Beef Cheeks with Tomato Bread

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This recipe pre-dates my 5 Ingredients philosophy.

Spanish Braised Beef Cheeks with Tomato Bread

From Stonesoup

Adapted from a recipe by Emma Knowles & Lisa Featherby published in the April 08 Australian Gourmet Traveller.

This is a great dish for entertaining as you can cook the cheeks in advance and then just reheat and serve with some crusty bread bought on your way home from work.

Serves 4
3T olive oil
2 red onions, peeled & diced
4 beef cheeks, approx 250g each
4 cloves garlic, peeled & smashed
400g can tomatoes
1T ground cumin
2T smoky paprika
1 1/2C (375mL) red wine
2C (500mL) chicken stock
3 bay leaves
large handful green olives
for the tomato bread:
4 large slices sourdough
1 clove garlic, halved cross wise
handful cherry tomatoes, torn in half
extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 150C. Heat a large heavy based flame proof casserole dish over a medium low flame. Add oil and onions and cook covered stirring occasionally for approx 15mins or until onions are softened but not browned. Add cheeks, garlic, tomatoes, spices, wine, stock and bay leaves and bring to a simmer.

2. Cover and place in the oven for 4 hours, turning cheeks occasionally. Season and add olives and continue to cook for another 2 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender. If the sauce is too brothy, remove cheeks and set aside and simmer sauce until it reaches the desired consistency. Return cheeks and warm through.

3. For the tomato bread, lightly toast the sourdough slices on one side and rub the toasted side of each with the cut surface of the garlic. Smash halved tomatoes over the bread and drizzle with oil. Serve cheeks hot with bread for mopping up the juices passed separately.