Name: Czech Beef in Cream Sauce
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 1 pot
Ingredients: 1 kg beef hindquarter; 3 pcs carrot; 2 pcs parsley root; 200 g celeriac; 2 pcs onion; 100 g bacon; 40 g butter; rapeseed oil; 1.5 teaspoon salt; 0.5 teaspoon ground pepper; 2 pcs bay leaves; 5 pcs allspice; 600 ml poultry stock; 250 ml whipping cream; 15 g plain flour; 1 teaspoon caster sugar; 1 pc lemon; 60 g lingonberry compote

Step by step process

Preparation

1
Clean and pat dry the beef. If needed, tie it with kitchen twine into a roulade shape to help it hold during braising. Lightly season with salt and pepper and set aside. Meanwhile, peel and cut the carrots, parsnip, and celery into large cubes. Peel and roughly chop the onion, and slice the bacon into strips. Prepare the bay leaves, allspice, broth, cream, and lemon. Squeeze the juice from half of the lemon. keep the other half for final seasoning.

Cooking

2
Heat the canola oil in a heavy-bottomed pot. Add the prepared beef and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 6-8 minutes. Remove the meat and set aside.
3
Add butter and the sliced bacon to the same pot, render the bacon briefly. Add the chopped onion and all the root vegetables. Sauté everything together for 8-10 minutes until the vegetables are golden and fragrant.
TIP:
Sauté vegetables over low to medium heat in fat, stirring frequently and cooking until golden. This helps develop their flavor and aroma without causing bitterness.
4
Return the meat to the pot, add bay leaves and allspice. Pour in enough broth to reach halfway up the side of the meat. Add half of the lemon juice. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 1.5-2 hours until the meat is completely tender. Turn the meat halfway through and add more broth if necessary.
TIP:
First, heat the wok thoroughly and fry the ingredients in smaller batches. Thanks to the high temperature, the meat quickly sears and browns. An overcrowded wok, on the other hand, cools down and starts steaming the food.
5
Once the meat is tender, remove it from the sauce. Discard the bay leaves and allspice berries. Purée the vegetables and cooking juices in the pot using a hand blender until smooth, then stir in the cream.
6
Mix the flour with a bit of cold water to make a thin slurry, then slowly pour it into the sauce while stirring constantly. Simmer for 10 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, sugar, and lemon juice as needed.
TIP:
Prepare the roux by mixing flour in cold water and slowly pour it into the hot sauce while stirring constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Then, briefly boil the sauce to remove the raw taste and thicken it.
7
Slice the beef and return it to the finished sauce. Gently reheat so the flavors meld and the meat absorbs the sauce.

Serving

8
Serve the beef in cream sauce with your favorite dumplings, generously ladled with the sauce. Finish each portion with a spoonful of cranberry compote and serve immediately while hot.