Recipe – Kokkinisto-Greek Style Braised Beef in Spicy Tomato Sauce

 

 

I don’t know how I had managed to forget about this delicious Greek recipe for kokkinisto, tender, braised beef in a rich, spicy tomato sauce, one of my all-time favourites, taught to me by my sister-in-law more than forty years ago, I used to make it on a regular basis, maybe even once a week.

It came back to mind after my oven went on the blink, not an infrequent occurrence I may add, I knew something was amiss by the strange sounds it was emitting which began as if a tractor was revving up and progressed to the sound of a Dakota plane taking off!

This means I am now on the lookout for recipes that require only boiling and frying (the grill is integral to the oven so also kaput).

The idea to post the recipe came about when my daughter, Nais, asked me how to make kokkinisto, ‘Nais, this recipe is practically fail-safe and it’s so easy even you can do it!’

 

Kokkinisto-Greek Style Braised Beef in Rich and Spicy Tomato Sauce

 

The term Kokkinisto, in Greek cuisine, means ‘reddened’ that is browning the meat to seal in all the juices, before adding the ingredients for the spicy tomato sauce.

Kokkinisto may be prepared with beef, chicken or lamb.

As with all recipes, not only Greek, there are many different versions, this one I love, and it’s the one I stick to.

No fresh tomatoes, no garlic, which are usually found in recipes for this dish, I have tried most recipes; this is the one I always return to, the one my family prefer.

 

Ingredients

 

Serves 4 – 6 people

Cooking time about 4 hours

 

 

 

1 Kilo beef cut into portions

 ( Stewing steak, neck or shoulder are good choices, choose a cut which has some fat, the more fat a piece of meat has, the softer and tastier it is.)

3-4 onions

 (Use how many you prefer, less or more, I prefer more!)

A carton or tin of pummaro ( passata), or concentrated  tomato juice about 450g

200ml Olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper to your taste

1/2 Tsp ground cloves

1/2 Tsp ground cinnamon

Around 500ml hot water

 

Method

 

Heat the oil to a high temperature in a large saucepan, and brown the meat, try not to turn the meat too soon, as it browns, it will ‘unstick’ itself from the bottom of the pan and will be easy to turn with a fork.

Cook until well browned on all sides.

 

 

Add the concentrated tomato, jiggle the pan a bit to make sure it’s evenly distributed around the meat, if needed, add enough hot water to cover the meat, stir gently to combine tomato juice and water.

Bring to the boil and then lower heat to a low simmer.

Add the salt, pepper, cinnamon and cloves, again stir gently to combine everything together.

Peel the onions, leave whole and add to the pan.

 

 

Make sure all the meat is covered with the sauce, if not, add a little more hot water.

Place lid on saucepan and simmer on low heat for about four hours.

Check every thirty minutes or so, stir gently, make sure meat is still covered by sauce, if not, add hot water and stir gently again.

 

 

That’s it, just keep your eye on it, so that sauce does not dry up and stir gently, so as not to break up the meat.

This melt-in-your mouth tender meat, swimming in tasty tomato sauce is scrumptious served with rice pilaf, spaghetti, mashed potato, or, my personal favourite, chips.

 

 

 

Kali orexi – bon appetit

Enjoy!