The latest edition of Caribbean Cookbook heads to the famous Half Moon resort in Jamaica, where Chef Omar Sybblis of the Pepperpot Restaurant has offered up his special recipe for braised oxtail, Jamaican style.
Here’s how to make it:
Ingredients
4kg Oxtail
2 cups Marinade (instructions below)
½ cup Soy Sauce
1litre beef stock
1 ½ cups chopped onions
2Tbs-minced garlic
1 large sprig of thyme
Salt and black pepper to taste
2 cups cooked broad beans (Lima Beans)
Ingredients for the Marinade
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup scallions, finely chopped
1 hot pepper, finely chopped
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon cider or white vinegar
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon salt (kosher or sea salt is preferable)
1 teaspoon Pimento (Allspice), ground
Preparation of Marinade:
Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Method
1. Place oxtail in a non-reactive bowl, season with salt and black pepper to taste.
2. Pour on generously the marinade and soy sauce on the seasoned oxtail, and then set aside.
3. Place marinated oxtail on a sheet pan and roast in a medium temperature oven (approx. 350degrees F), until tenderness and desired colour is achieved.
4. Pour off the excess fat from the roasted oxtail; remove from roasting pan and set aside.
5. In a large braising pot or preferably a large Dutch pot sauté onions and garlic until golden, then add reserved roasted oxtail.
6. Shred the large sprig of thyme, then stir in with oxtail, onions and garlic then add the beef stock to cover the meat.
7. Cover and cook very slowly over a medium flame until tender, and then add the cooked broad beans and simmer. As necessary add water as needed to extend the cooking process to tenderness.
Above: Chef Omar Sybblis