Chinese Ox Cheek Stew with Greens and Rice

The Mrs and I were both off work with the first cold of winter and feeling very sorry for ourselves. After a lunch time sinus cleansing Tom Yum Soup we decided to continue with the Asian theme and rustled up the following stew with some cheap ox cheeks from the freezer.

The result was a spicy chinese, melt in your mouth sense of relief. All the flu symptoms just evaporated away and we felt human again.

Could this combination of asian spices, tender meat and re-energizing greens be the cure for the common cold???

Well.... No, but like having ten pints of lager / 2 bottles of wine (adjust according to taste) it does allow for a little respite before having to deal with the blocked nose and achy joints all over again.

And if you aren't ill? Then this dish may just cheer up a bad day or make a good day memorable. 'remember that day we had chinese ox cheek stew' 'ahhhh, now that was a great day!'...

Ingredients -

700g (approx 2) Ox Cheeks, cut into large pieces

4 Garlic cloves, minced

2 birdseye chillis, chopped, seeds removed to taste

2 to 3cm piece of ginger, grated

3 to 4 sping onions, chopped

Plain flour

Heaped tsp of 5 spice

Star anise

tsp sugar

2 tbsp chinese rice wine

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

300ml beef stock

Olive oil.

For the Kale - 

200g bag of Kale, veg oil, garlic clove, tbsp dark soy sauce and tbsp oyster sauce.

To Serve -

Plain rice and pak choi, boiled.

• Preheat oven to 130 degrees celsius, place a medium casserole dish inside to warm.
• Dust the ox cheek pieces in a little flour and fry in a tbsp or so of oil until browned on all sides, remove.
• Fry the ginger, garlic, onion and chilli in a tbsp of oil until fragrant, add the 5 spice and star anise and fry for another minute. 
• Add the sugar and browned beef and give everything a good stir, pour everything into the casserole dish.
• Deglaze the pan with the rice wine and add this to the casserole dish too.
• Pour in the Soy and Stock and give it another stir, put the lid on and whack it in the oven for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally, until the meat is really tender.

For the Kale -

• Heat the oil in a wok, add the garlic and then the kale and mix together for a couple of mins.
• Add 100ml of boiling water and cook for a few mins.
• Add the soy and oyster sauces and cook until combined and the kale has wilted.

Serve the chinese stew over boiled rice with the kale on the side (you won't need any of the sauce from the wok) and some pak choi.