Day 40: stewed magnificence
It’s no secret that I get huge satisfaction from cooking and eating - and indeed talking and writing about - food, and today is certainly no exception to that fact. I was so blown away by today’s cookalong that I don’t really have much to say (I hear you sigh with relief). This is not to say, however, that I am any less enthusiastic about it than I am the others; in fact, I’d like to think it implies the exact opposite.
So, without further ado, I am very happy today to present you with Nigella’s Beef with Anchovies and Thyme; it’s essentially a beef and red wine stew that has been taken to a new - and higher - plane of existence and, for me, it’s life-changing.
Nigella’s Beef Stew with Anchovies and Thyme
We don’t tend to each much beef in this house, not even minced beef, and - where possible - I will normally use pork or turkey mince in its stead; this is for no reason other than the fact that beef doesn’t agree too well with my metabolism. Although I do like to play my small part in caring for the environment and to reduce the demand for inappropriately intensive beef farming. So, when we do eat beef I will fork out the little extra to buy good quality, appropriately farmed (and fed) beef. This can be considerably more expensive, which is another reason for not eating it often.
Just when I thought the use of anchovies was limited to pasta (aside from the Celeriac and Anchovy gratin I made last week), I then discover the magical qualities they can imbue upon a stew. I am in complete awe of the magnificence of this beef stew; something so easy to make that you then leave for three hours to do its thing, before then reaping the pleasurable benefits from the labors of your oven. You know when you eat with a coyish smile of pure pleasure that you’ve hit the jackpot and this beef braised in red wine with thyme and anchovies was a very happy prize indeed. It is, quite simply, stewed magnificence.
So, what I mean by life-changing is that if we only ever eat beef once or twice a month, then I very much want it to take the form of this stew.
I had saved the cooking water from when I made the celeriac gratin so I used this in place of the beef stock, but I did add half a beef stock-pot too. As the celeriac water was salted, and coupled with the anchovies, I didn’t want to add a full pot in case I ruined it. You can always add more later, but you can’t take it out. I served this with pampuchy - a steamed yeast dumpling, which I then fried in butter - and I convinced myself that the celery, onion, and carrot in the stew was enough to warrant not needing a side of veg.
Flavour musings
The anchovies here definitely do not add fishiness, and most certainly add flavourfulness; a flavourfullness unrivalled in any other slow-cooked stew I have had the honour of eating.
Our anchovy journey, under guidance from Nigella’s books, has rewarded us with success after success and I am just so in love with the fruitious qualities of this cookalong. The boosted umami depth of Nigella’s Beef with Anchovies and Thyme makes it quite possibly (another) one of the best things I have ever eaten, and while it needs no altering in any way - I would love to add some butter-fried buttom mushrooms and make it into a steak and mushroom pie. I may well do this with the next batch of leftovers, for this batch of leftovers sits happily in my freezer ready to impress again in the (very) near future.
