Three Levels of Beef

Spice training works in stages. You start off with something that is just a niggle. You can handle that right? Good. Then you move on. You get bored. You need something more. Suddenly, chili is like salt, and life is good. You understand the rush, you feel the burn, you embrace it. This is what this beef is about. Training you up for the big leagues. Make this over and over again and eventually, you'll learn to love chili. Recipe follows!

Ingredients

1.5kg Beef Brisket, diced

800g Tinned Crushed Tomatoes

2 White Onions, peeled and finely sliced

6 Cloves of Garlic, peeled and minced

1 Inch of Ginger, peeled and minced

1/4 Cup Malt Vinegar.

1 Cup of Beef Stock

3 Teaspoons Dried Marjoram

3 Teaspoons Oregano

3 Heaped Teaspoons Smoked Paprika

1 Sprig of Rosemary

3 Hot Sauces of Increasing heat or 3 Chilies of increasing heat, finely chopped, seeds included

Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Pepper

For the Puree

One Large Swede, peeled and diced

800g Potatoes. peeled and diced

100g Butter

100ml Cream

Whole Milk

Salt

Pepper

Method

This will take a few hours, about four unless you can expedite the timing with a pressure cooker.

In a large pot, pour a lug of oil. To the oil add the onions, garlic, and ginger. Soften over a medium heat. Once soft, ad the marjoram, oregano, smoked paprika and rosemary. Saute until fragrant. Once it's there, add the beef. Continue to cook on a medium heat until it begins to brown.

Add the tomatoes, malt vinegar and the beef stock. If this doesn't cover the meat by about an inch, add hot water to the mixture until the beef is well covered.

Simmer on a medium heat for four hours, or until the meat falls apart. The sauce will reduce. Make sure you stir it occasionally to stop it from sticking to the bottom!

With about an hour to go, get out two pots. In one pot, put the potatoes in with the cream and butter then cover with milk. Turn to a low heat and gently simmer until really tender. In the other pot put your swede. Boil until tender, then blend in a blender with the water you boiled them in until super smooth.

With the potatoes, strain them through a sieve, keeping the milk/butter/cream mixture. Press the potatoes with a wooden spoon through the sieve until it is "pureed". Stir the potatoes back into the milk until smooth.

Add the potatoes to the swede and put onto a low heat. Gently reduce until its folds sit on one another.

When the meat is falling apart, separate it into three equal portions in three separate cooking pots/pans. To each, add the chili - a different chilli for each pot. Cook for an additional thirty minutes until well combined.

If you're using chili sauces, don't worry about cooking longer, just make sure it's all been pulled apart.

Try the puree, then salt and pepper to taste. Do the same for each of the pulled beefs.

Serve it up with a nominal salad as above, some crusty bread with olive oil and balsamic. Make a bed of puree and three servings of beef. Sweat it out and...

Enjoy!