Spanish Oxtail Soup (Rabo de Toro)

Inspired from our recent trip to Spain.

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Recipe from https://spanishsabores.com/recipe-spanish-bull-tail-stew-rabo-de-toro/

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours 10 minutes

Total Time: 3 hours 25 minutes

Servings: 4 serving

Ingredients:

• About 3-4 pounds (1.4-1.8kg) of rabo de toro oxtail, cow tail, etc.

• 3 carrots sliced into 1/4 inch rounds

• 1 large sweet onion diced

• 1 red pepper diced

• 1 leek diced

• 2-3 ripe tomatoes diced

• 4 cloves of garlic minced

• 2 cups (475 ml) of beef stock

• 3 cups (700 ml) of red wine a decent table wine like a Spanish rioja or tempranillo will do nicely

• 2 bay leafs

• 4 cloves

• 1 teaspoon ground ginger

• Salt

• Pepper

• Flour to coat the meat

• Olive oil

Instructions:

1. Season the bull tail with salt and pepper.

2. In a large, heavy pan (cast iron works great) heat a splash of olive oil to a medium high heat (not yet smoking).

3. Lightly dust the rabo de toro with flour (shake away excess) and sear each piece in the hot oil until nicely browned, about 30 seconds per side.

4. Remove the bull tail and let the pieces rest.

5. In the pan's oil, saute the leek, onion, garlic, red pepper, and tomato for about 10 minutes.

6. Add the carrots, bay leafs, ginger, and cloves and saute 1 minute.

7. Add the bull tail back to the pan and cover with the wine and stock.

8. Bring to a boil and then cover and reduce to a slow simmer.

9. Cook the rabo de toro for 3 hours and then check to see if it is falling away from the bone. It may need another hour or so if the meat is very tough.

10. If it is tender enough, remove the meat and then puree the sauce with a hand blender (not necessary but nice).

11. Serve with the sauce and homemade french fries or mashed potatoes for an authentic Spanish meal!

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what a super delicious way to eat oxtail, i think it came out pretty well considering it being my first time making it. When we had the dish in spain the sauce was definitely thicker and more rich, so maybe the next time i cook it down a bit longer or add less tomatoes as i think the tomatoes here have more water than those in spain. I will maybe als add a few additional spices or ingredients to get a deeper flavor but the key ingredient to making this good is the wine, it is what makes the dish. It is like coq au vin but with oxtail.

I used my pressure cooker to cut the cooking time and the oxtail still came out super tender, the meat was falling off the bone. if you want a very comforting tasty dish that actually doesn’t need that much effort then this dish is perfect.