THERE’S an advert on TV where everyone sitting around the television has ordered a different meal from every fast food joint on the high street. The delivery man arrives and out of a paper bag comes a different fast food meal from a different high street outlet for everyone.
What they don’t tell you is that it must cost an astronomical price to eat like this and, nutritionally, it’s most likely packed with all the wrong kinds of calories. Is this the way forward? Not my idea of fun.
If I want an easy night entertaining friends and family in front of the telly, I prepare a favourite dish made the day before and warm it through when we’re all ready to eat. Minimum fuss, much cheaper and I bet much healthier too.
BRAISED BEEF IN RED WINE
750g chuck or stewing steak
Sea salt & black pepper
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 sticks celery, peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
500ml full bodied red wine
2-3 plum tomatoes
2 fresh bay leaves
Small bunch fresh thyme
6-8 peeled new potatoes
Pre-heat oven 180C/Gas 4
Choose a heavy bottomed casserole with a tight-fitting lid.
Season the meat well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Heat the oil in the saucepan and add the meat, a layer at a time to brown it well. Transfer the meat to a plate until it is all browned.
Using a wooden spoon, loosen any sediment from the bottom of the saucepan and add the garlic, onion and celery and sauté until it is all softened and translucent. (You may have to add a further splash of olive oil).
Add the carrot and, raising the heat, add the red wine.
Allow to cook fiercely until all the alcohol has evaporated. Check by sniffing the vapours. When they no longer catch the back of your throat the alcohol has gone.
Reduce the heat to medium, and all the browned meat, all the juices, the tomatoes and herbs to the saucepan. Add enough hot water just to cover the meat, not too much.
Bring to the boil and, with the lid secure, transfer to the oven and leave to cook for 2 to 2 ½ hours until the meat is tender.
Check from time to time adding a little more hot water if the sauce is evaporating too much.
Add the peeled new potatoes for the last half hour.
Job done.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here