Name: Stop-and-Go Braised Oxtails with Oyster Mushrooms
Yield: Serves 5 to 6
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 5 pounds meaty oxtails, cut 1½ inches thick, fat trimmed; 2 tablespoons Banyuls or aged sherry vinegar; 2 large carrots, coarsely chopped; 4 garlic cloves, minced; Salt and freshly ground pepper; 1½ tablespoons fresh thyme leaves or 1½ teaspoons dried; 1 tablespoon bitter orange marmalade; Bouquet garni (celery leaves from 1 small rib, 1 sprig of parsley, 1 sprig of thyme, and i bay leaf, tied together); 1 tablespoon butter; 2 cups dry white wine; 1 celery rib, coarsely chopped; 1 teaspoon bruised fennel seeds; ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil; ½ cup dried porcini mushrooms Pinch of sugar; 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley; 1 tablespoon coarsely ground pepper; 1½ pounds oyster mushrooms, thickly sliced; 2 medium onions, coarsely chopped; 1 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano

Preparation info

Serves
5 to 6

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen

By Paula Wolfert

Published 2003

About

This French Catalan-inspired stew is a perfect example of how fatty meat, cooked on the bone, will produce a memorable succulent dish. Prepare it a day in advance so you can remove all the fat and allow the full flavor to develop.

On the first day, I rub the oxtails with herbs and spices and then brown them under the broiler, which imbues the meat with a faint scent of smoldering aromatics, thus launching the first layer of richness. The following day, I finish the dish with multipl