Slow-cooked chilli & tomato beef cheeks

Delicious winter meals using a slow cooker. You will need 2kg beef cheeks to get just over 1kg in weight once they have been well trimmed – use the trimmings to make beef stock. You can make this dish the day before serving. Reheat in a low oven for 1 hour then increase the heat and cook for a further 30 minutes.

SERVES: 6

olive oil for cooking
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, peeled
2kg beef cheeks, trimmed of silver skin and any excess fat
4 dried Guajillo chillies*, stems removed
400g can whole tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
750g Agria potatoes, peeled, cut into 3cm-4cm pieces
4 sprigs oregano
corn tortillas and lime wedges to serve

Preheat the slow cooker for 20 minutes. Heat a dash of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and 2 cloves garlic and cook for 5 minutes until golden. Transfer to the slow cooker.

Increase the frying pan heat to high, add another dash of oil and brown the beef cheeks on both sides. Transfer to the slow cooker. Pour 4 cups hot water over the beef and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and cook on Low for 4 hours.
Meanwhile, soak the chillies in2 cups boiling water for 30 minutes. Put the chillies and their soakingliquid in a blender with the remaining3 cloves garlic and the drained canned tomatoes. Blend until smooth. Pour through a sieve into a bowl.

Heat the grapeseed oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the chilli puree and boil, stirring, for 5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Add the potatoes to the slow cooker, along with the chilli puree and oregano sprigs. Cover with the lid then cook for a further 4 hours on Low or until the potatoes are tender and the beef cheeks are almost falling apart. Serve with tortillas and lime wedges.

* Guajillo chillies are dried chillies with a mild, smoky flavour. You can buy them online at mexicanspecialities.co. nz or look for the Tio Pablo brand in food stores and supermarkets.

Cooking in regular oven:

Put the cooked onion and garlic in a roasting dish then top with the browned beef cheeks and the hot water. Cover and cook in a 150°C oven for 4 hours (the liquid should be simmering throughout cooking) then add the chilli puree, potatoes and oregano and cook for 2 more hours or until very tender.