Beef Brisket Jalfrezi

I don’t seem to ever have enough time these days for the tellybox, even for cooking shows, but I caught a little of the first episode of Channel 4’s Eat The Week With Iceland last year and have been hooked ever since. Happily, all of the recipes from the show are on the Iceland website and I find myself wanting to cook almost all of the dishes from every show but this beef dish in particular (that started out as a Rogan Josh Brisket) has become an absolute favourite.

I use a whole jar of Patak’s Jalfrezi Paste for a wonderfully warm hit but if you’re worried about that being a little too spicy, just use half a jar and freeze the rest or try a milder curry paste – Rogan Josh, Keralan – there are plenty on the market. Once you’ve seen the brisket fall apart as the knife touches it and tasted the warmly spiced forkful – well, I think this will become a regular in your kitchen too.

Side dishes

I cooked Rimmer’s Spiced Potatoes the first time – so oddly yellow in the pan but worth it for the taste! – but to make this a true one pot dish I’ve instead put the potatoes in with the additional vegetables. In the winter I often put turnips or sweet potatoes in and serve it with a pan of creamy, buttery mashed potatoes. We used Storm Emma as an excuse for the gluttony…

Beef Brisket Jalfrezi [6 generous portions]

Ingredients

All quantities are approximate – use what you have to hand or in the freezer.

1kg flat cut beef brisket (most of fat trimmed)
Tablespoon flour
Salt and pepper
Tablespoon vegetable oil
8 medium onions, sliced
1 jar of Patak’s Jalfrezi paste or similar
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
8 or more large carrots cut into chunks
12 or so new potatoes, halved (old, sweet potatoes and/or turnips also work)
300 ml beef stock (made from one Oxo cube)
2 large handfuls of frozen peas (or broad beans, green beans, spinach, etc.)
600g tomatoes (whole if small, halved if large)

Method

Preheat oven to 160C (Fan 140 / Gas mark 4).
Heat the oil in a large pan.
Season the meat, dust with flour and seal in a hot pan for about 6 minutes each side until nicely caramelised.
Remove the meat then cook the onions for 15 minutes until softened and about to caramelise.
Put the onions in a roasting tin then cook the carrots, potatoes and garlic for about 10 minutes before adding those to the roasting pan.
Place all the vegetables plus the tomatoes in a roasting tin then pour over the stock.
Spread the curry paste onto the meat and sit the beef on top of the vegetables.
Cover with a lid or foil and roast for 4 hours, checking if it needs more stock if it dries out.
After 3 hours, remove the lid (or foil) and add the peas and other green veg if using.
At the 4 hour mark, transfer the beef to a chopping board, slice across the grain and serve alongside the meltingly lovely vegetables.