Slow Cooked NZ Beef Cheeks

Preparation Time: 60 mins
Serves: 4-6
Cooking Time: 480 mins
Ready Time: 540 mins
Cooking Method: Slow Cook
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

4 Silver Fern Farms beef cheeks, trimmed of silver skin
3 Tbsp flour
2 stalks celery, strings removed and finely diced
1 carrot, very finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
Pared rind of 1 orange
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground allspice
1 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock
Salt and pepper, to taste

Polenta or potatoes
Carrots, chopped
Fresh parsley, chopped

Method

FOR THE BEEF
Preheat slow cooker for 20 minutes.

Add a dash of oil to a large casserole dish (one that is suitable for stovetop) and place over a medium-high heat. Dust beef cheeks with flour, place in casserole dish and brown on both sides (do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the dish). Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a plate as you go.

Lower the heat and add another dash of oil. Add the celery, carrot and onion and cook until soft. Add the garlic, bay leaves, orange rind, ground cumin and allspice and cook for a further one minute.

Return browned beef cheeks to the casserole dish, pour in the red wine and bring to a boil. Pour in the beef stock, bring up to a boil again.
Transfer to preheated slow cooker and slow cook on low for 8 hours.

FOR THE SAUCE
Remove the beef cheeks from the slow cooker when ready to serve.
Remove bay leaves and use a stick blender to mix the remaining liquid.

TO SERVE
Polenta (prepared as instructed on packaging) or mashed potatoes
Carrots (or your choice of veggies), cooked
Fresh parsley, chopped

Recipe supplied by Beef + Lamb New Zealand