Lamb shank and oxtail and a bottle of smooth, luscious red. We’re loving winter

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Oxtail with green olives and orange

Winter is the time to bring out full-bodied reds, best enjoyed by the fireside or with heart-warming comfort food. New Roodeberg Reserve, a blend of the finest wines in the cellar, is the perfect freezing-day food companion … think meaty casseroles, roasts and game dishes. An intense and richly textured wine, its intricate layers of red plum, blueberries, crushed herbs and tobacco leaf with hints of dark chocolate are rounded off by soft, silky tannins. The wine infuses rich flavour when added to hearty winter dishes like this one, from foodie Elmarie Berry.

You’ll need:

2,5kg oxtail;

Olive oil;

2 onions, diced;

2 Tblsps soy sauce;

A few sprigs fresh rosemary;

4 bay leaves;

1 glass Roodeberg Reserve;

1 cup beef stock;

Finely grated rind of 1 orange;

200g pitted green olives;

200g button mushrooms

Method:

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Heat the olive oil and fry the onion until soft.

Spoon it out and add oxtail to the hot pan. Fry until golden brown.

Add the cooked onions, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, wine, stock and orange rind.

Place in the oven and bake for 3 to 4 hours.

Check on it and add extra liquid if necessary.

Add the olives and mushrooms and bake for another 1 hour.

Roodeberg Reserve Red 2017 costs around R165 a bottle, and can be found at selected Pick n Pay stores, or ordered from kwvemporium.co.za

 

Slow-braised Karoo lamb shank

(Serves 4 – 6)

Warm up with a hearty meal of slow-braised Karoo lamb shank … rich and delicious, cooked until the meat falls off the bone. The recipe was shared by Spier Hotel … it’s winter food at its best. Serve it with a bottle of Spier Creative Block 3. Subtle, perfumed notes of blackcurrant, blackberry, raspberry, pomegranate and mulberry are followed by spicy flavours of black pepper and coriander … it’s a silky, rich mouthful.

You’ll need:

30 ml (2 Tblsps) vegetable oil;

4 medium-large lamb shanks, trimmed of excess fat;

1 large white onion, diced;

2 large carrots, peeled & finely chopped;

6 garlic cloves, finely grated;

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste;

500 ml (2 cups) beef stock;

375 ml (1.5 cups) good red wine;

4 large tomatoes, chopped;

30 ml (2 Tblsps) tomato paste;

4 sprigs rosemary;

4 sprigs thyme;

5 bay leaves

Method:

Preheat the oven to 160 °C.

Heat the oil in a large, wide oven-proof pot over medium-high heat.

Brown the shanks on all sides, then remove from pot and set aside.

Add the onions and carrots to the pot and fry over medium heat until softened, then add garlic and cook for one minute.

Return the shanks to the pot and season generously with salt and pepper. Add stock, wine, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and herbs.

Bring to a simmer, then cover the pot with a lid. Transfer to the oven and cook for 2 ½ – 3 hours, or until the meat starts falling off the bone.

Remove shanks from pot and set aside.

Discard bay leaves and herbs from the sauce and place pot on stove. Simmer sauce over medium heat until thickened to your desired consistency.

Add the shanks and serve warm with (optionally) herbed pap and vegetables.

You can order Spier Creative Block 3 online for R179 from shop.spier.co.za

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