Recipe for beef stifado...
...a wonderful, slow-cooked Cyprus stew
Here is a local recipe for beef stifado.
Cypriot beef may not be of the best quality in terms of taste and lean-ness but the Cypriot people know how to make the best of this by making lots of stews.
I never used to make this dish that often as you have to have the oven on for so long to get the meat really tender. BUT since upgrading my old pressure cooker to an ultra efficient and oh so safe new WMF Perfect Plus pressure cooker I haven't stopped cooking stews!
NB - Since I wrote this recipe over 10 years ago, times have changed and you can now buy Scottish Angus beef on the island, Not that I would use THAT in my beef stifado! The Cyprus beef from the lovely brown cows on the island is perfectly fine for a slow-cooked stew.
STIFADO
Beef with red wine, onions and spices (serves 4 people)
Picture courtesy of Effervescing Elephant
Ingredients:
- 1 kg/2lb stewing beef, cubed
- 1 kg/2lb small onions
- 2 bay leaves
- 50ml vinegar
- 250ml red wine
- 100ml olive oil + 1-2 tablespoon olive oil for frying
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 cloves
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 6-7 peppercorns
- 1 large tomato chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
How to prepare your recipe for beef stifado
Peel the onions and lightly fry in olive oil.
Remove from pan then lightly fry the pieces of beef until slightly brown.
Return the onions to the pan with all the other ingredients and enough water to cover the meat.
Cook on a low heat (150 ° C) for 2-3 hours until the meat is very tender.
When ready, the liquid should be almost completely absorbed.
Add more water during the cooking time if necessary.
Taste after 2 hours and adjust seasoning to taste.
Garnish with chopped parsley or oregano before serving.
Serve with roast or mashed potatoes (mashed spuds are not very Cypriot but they go so well with the rich juices around the meat). Enjoy. Mmm!
Kali Orexi!
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