Beef and Garlic Rice
Outstanding meaty dish for cold winter nights. I serve with brussels sprouts and crusty bread
Outstanding meaty dish for cold winter nights. I serve with brussels sprouts and crusty bread
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 2 cups water
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 bulb garlic
- 1/4 cup water cold
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 1/4 pounds boneless beef chuck roast trimmed of fat and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
- 1 14-oz can beef broth
- 1 teaspoon dried marjoram crushed
- 3 small onions cut into wedges
- 1 cup long-grain rice
- 3 tablespoon chives cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoon vinegar basalmic or red wine
- Carbohydrate 55.28344625 g
- Cholesterol 93.555 mg
- Fat 30.2882099991 g
- Fiber 2.01207498955727 g
- Protein 33.6844025 g
- Saturated Fat 10.8750734998757 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (478g)
- Sodium 493.996124999982 mg
- Sugar 53.2713712604427 g
- Trans Fat 3.48035399997563 g
- Calories 639 calories
Step-by-step
- Remove papery outer layers from garlic bulb. Cut off about 1/4 inch from top of bulb, leaving the bulb intact but exposing the individual cloves. Place garlic in center of a 12-inch square of foil. Drizzle garlic with olive oil. Seal foil around garlic; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 325 degree F. In an ovenproof Dutch oven brown half the meat in hot cooking oil. Remove meat with slotted spoon; brown the remaining meat. Drain off excess fat. Return all meat to pot. Stir in the beef broth, the 1/2 cup water, the Worcestershire sauce, and dried marjoram, if using.
- Cover and bake along with wrapped garlic for 35 minutes. Remove garlic from oven and add onion wedges to meat in pot. Cover and cook about 55 minutes longer or until meat is just tender.
- After meat has baked about 1 hour, prepare rice. Squeeze garlic from half of the roasted cloves into a medium saucepan; stir in the 2 cups water, the uncooked rice, and the salt. (Refrigerate remaining roasted garlic, covered, for another use; see note, below.) Bring to boiling, reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Stir in chives (and bottled garlic, if using).
- Remove meat from oven. In a small bowl or cup, stir the 1/4 cup cold water into cornstarch; add vinegar and mix until well combined. Add to beef along with fresh marjoram, if using. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Serve with garlic rice.
Swapping raw minced garlic for a whole roasted bulb fundamentally alters the aromatic profile of a dish, shifting the compound allicin into softer, caramelized sugars through slow roasting. Culinary tradition often relies on raw cloves for sharpness, yet enveloping an entire bulb in foil at 325 degrees Fahrenheit transforms the harsh bite into a spreadable, nutty paste. Chuck roast demands this sustained heat to break down dense collagen networks into gelatin, yielding tender protein strands when baked for approximately ninety total minutes inside a heavy Dutch oven.
The Transformation of Allium and Meat
Browning beef in batches prevents steam accumulation, ensuring the surface proteins undergo the Maillard reaction rather than boiling in their own juices. Deglazing the pot with beef broth incorporates these browned bits back into the liquid, forming a complex foundation for the braise. Cornstarch mixed with cold water acts as a suspension agent that thickens the simmering pan juices only after reaching a bubbly boil, requiring a strict two-minute cook time to eliminate any raw starch flavor. Rice cooked directly in water infused with the roasted garlic paste absorbs aromatic oils continuously, contrasting sharply with preparations where garlic is simply tossed into hot oil at the final moment.Storage and Second-Day Evolution
Extended refrigeration allows starches within the cooked grains to retrograde slightly, firming up the texture of leftover rice for subsequent meals. Storing leftover roasted garlic heads submerged in oil inside a sealed container prevents oxidation for up to one week, maintaining the sweet profile for rapid incorporation into dressings or pan sauces later. Reheating the braised beef slowly on the stovetop redistributes moisture evenly through the muscle fibers without overcooking the lean chuck cut.
