Off-the-Cuff Beef Curry..

We’ve all been there – a packet of something with its best-before date shouting at you from the fridge. It usually happens on a Monday, which is my ‘clear-out-the-bottom-of-the-fridge’ day..

And so it was, on a really busy week, that the packet of Organic Beef pieces was guilting me from afar.

Me: (sighing, and definitely on the grumpy side) I’ll just throw this together with whatever else is lying around, and sure it will be grand…’

Me: (later, and definitely more cheerful) Honestly, I should do this more often!

Sometimes, you just chuck a dish together without even thinking about it; and what a joy it is when it turns out so well!

Here’s what I used:

EQUIPMENT:

• A large frying pan.
• An ovenproof casserole
• Chopping board, sharp knife etc.

INGREDIENTS:

• 300g or so of beef pieces
• 2 large onions roughly chopped        
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 300g Mushrooms – I used mini-Portobello mushrooms – chopped small.
• 2 teaspoons of ground Cumin

• 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika
• Sprinkle of dried Chilli flakes – or half a fresh red /green chilli, finely chopped if you have it.
• generous splash of red wine
• 1 x 350g jar of Passata
• 2-3 tablespoons of dark Soy sauce.
• 1 tablespoon of dark brown sugar – I used dark Muscovado
• Salt – taste it first – and Pepper
• Rapeseed oil
• Basmati Rice – to serve.

METHOD:

• Heat the oven to 120º Fan or the equivalent.
• Heat the oil in the pan until it’s hot – add the beef pieces.
• Allow the beef to cook until the pieces are charred on the edges – about 10 minutes. If you’re using a large amount of beef, or have a small frying pan, you might need to do this in two batches. Remove the beef to a plate.
• Reduce the heat and add the onions.

• Add the chopped mushrooms. Stir around until they start to wilt – about 5-10 minutes.
• Add the garlic and all the spices.
• Return the beef to the pan.
• Add the wine; let it bubble and reduce.
• Add the Passata and the Soya Sauce.

• Season with a little salt (taste it first – the Soy Sauce might be salty enough) and lots of freshly ground Black Pepper.
• Transfer the whole lot to the casserole and pop it into the oven at 120ºFan for 1-2 hours or until the beef is tender. See NOTES

• If you like, add a handful of chopped Apricots and cook for a further 15 minutes.
• As always, this tastes better the next day, so leave it if you can, then reheat gently while you cook the rice.
• Serve with Basmati Rice.

NOTES:

• This will freeze like a dream, so make it, freeze it in a labelled and dated container with a tight-fitting lid. Use within 3 months.
• This would be ideal for a slow cooker – most of the liquid from the mushrooms is evaporated before you leave it to cook.
• This is a dark, comfort-food curry – it’s warm and comforting, rather than spicy-hot -which is just perfect on a cold wintery evening.
• Once thawed, it reheats in about the time it takes to cook the rice. Magic!