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A rich cottage pie built from deeply browned beef, a reduced red-wine braising sauce, and baked-potato mash. The recipe is straightforward, but it rewards patience at three points: drying and searing the beef, braising gently, and reducing the sauce sufficiently before assembly.
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Ingredients (one per line)
1 kg chuck steak, beef cheek, or short rib 500 ml dry red wine Sea salt Freshly cracked black pepper Neutral oil or beef fat 1 large white or brown onion, roughly chopped 2 carrots, roughly chopped 2 celery sticks, roughly chopped 1 whole bulb garlic, halved 2 tbsp tomato paste 2½ tbsp plain flour About 500 ml beef stock or demi-glace Fresh rosemary Fresh thyme 2 bay leaves Fresh parsley 1 additional brown onion, finely minced 1 tbsp unsalted butter 1.5 kg potatoes 200 ml double cream 200 g unsalted butter 2 garlic cloves Fresh thyme Salt White pepper Freshly grated nutmeg Gruyère, Comté, Parmesan, or Parmigiano Reggiano
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Cut the beef into large, fairly even chunks around 4–5 cm across. Place the beef in a bowl or nonreactive container and cover with the red wine. Refrigerate, covered, for 6–24 hours. Lift the beef from the wine and reserve all of the marinade. Drain the meat on paper towels, then pat it extremely dry. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper. Heat a large casserole or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and give it several minutes to heat fully. Add a thin layer of neutral oil or beef fat. Sear the beef in batches, leaving space between the pieces, until deeply browned on multiple sides. Transfer seared beef to a plate and repeat until all beef is browned. Lower the heat slightly and add more oil or beef fat if the pot looks dry. Add the roughly chopped onion, carrots, celery, and halved garlic bulb. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook for several minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot, until the vegetables soften and begin to caramelize. Add the tomato paste and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Return the beef and any accumulated juices to the pot and toss everything together. Sprinkle over the flour and stir well. Cook for 1–2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Pour in the reserved red-wine marinade. Bring the liquid to a simmer, scraping the bottom of the pot thoroughly. Let the wine reduce for about 5 minutes. Add enough beef stock or demi-glace to just cover the meat. Add rosemary, thyme, and bay leaves. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Braise at a very gentle simmer for about 3 hours, checking periodically, until the beef can be pulled apart easily with a fork. While the beef cooks, combine the double cream, 200 g butter, 2 garlic cloves, and fresh thyme in a saucepan. Warm over medium heat until the butter melts and the mixture begins to simmer gently. Simmer for 2–3 minutes. Remove the infused cream from the heat. Season with salt, white pepper, and freshly grated nutmeg. Strain the mixture and set it aside. When the beef is tender, remove the meat and carrots from the pot. Set them aside. Strain the braising liquid into a clean saucepan and discard the spent vegetables and herbs. Roughly chop or shred the beef, keeping some texture. Bring the strained braising liquid to a lively simmer over medium-high heat and reduce for about 20 minutes until glossy, concentrated, and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F. Bake the whole potatoes for about 1 hour, or until completely tender through the center. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a clean pan over medium-high heat. Add the finely minced brown onion and sauté for several minutes, until softened and lightly golden around the edges. Add the chopped beef to the onion and stir to combine. Add the reduced braising liquid a few ladles at a time until the mixture is rich, moist, and cohesive, but not loose or soupy. Add chopped parsley and the reserved carrots. Fold everything together. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Set the filling aside to cool slightly. As soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle, split them and remove the skins. Mash them while still hot. Warm half of the infused cream over medium-low heat. Pass the hot baked potatoes through a ricer directly into the warm cream. Mix gently until combined. Add more infused cream gradually until the mash is smooth, rich, and fluffy, avoiding aggressive stirring. Taste and adjust the salt, white pepper, and nutmeg. A small amount of Gruyère, Comté, or Parmesan can be mixed into the mash if desired. Spoon the beef filling into a large pie dish and spread it into an even layer. Add the mashed potato in several spoonfuls across the surface. Gently smooth the mash over the filling, sealing it to the edges of the dish. Drag a fork lightly across the surface to create ridges and uneven peaks. Grate Parmigiano Reggiano or another firm cheese over the top. Bake at 180°C / 350°F for 25–35 minutes until the filling is bubbling around the edges and the potato topping is deeply golden in places. Rest for about 15 minutes before serving. Serve with additional reduced braising sauce and fresh herbs.
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