Beef With Prunes & Star Anise
Equipment
- heavy-based saucepan
Ingredients
- 500 g lean beef cut into bite-size cubes
- 4 garlic cloves smashed in their skins
- 2 dried red chillies
- 3 star anise
- 600 ml beef stock
- 25 g butter
- 1½ tablespoons honey
- 175 g prunes ready-to-eat pitted soaked in water for 4 hours
- sea salt and black pepper
- small bunch flat leaf parsley finely chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Place the beef in the base of a tagine or a large, heavy-based saucepan with the garlic, chillies and star anise.
- Pour in the stock and bring to the boil.
- Reduce the heat, cover and cook gently for 2 hours.
- Season the stock with salt and pepper and stir in the butter and honey.
- Drain the prunes and add them to the tagine.
- Re-cover and cook gently for a further 30 minutes to let the flavours mingle.
- Garnish with the parsley and serve with couscous or chunks of crusty bread, if liked.
Notes & Wine Advice
For beef with plums & cardamom,
replace the star anise with 6 cardamom pods and cook the beef in the stock as for Beef with prunes & star anise. Season to taste, stir in the butter and honey and cook for a further 15 minutes. Halve and stone 6 firm, fresh plums, add them to the tagine, and cook gently for 10 minutes. Garnish with a small bunch of finely chopped coriander.