Every family has it: that one sacred food that marks all special occasions—and carries with it the threat of Eternal Shame and constant reminders of That Time You Messed Up. In the Sparks household, that dish is oxtails. They’re so important, in fact, that only the heads of each household is allowed to cook them during gatherings, leaving few chances for the next generation—i.e. Me—to show off their skills in the kitchen. So, the second I heard that Claire Saffitz had developed a group-sized oxtail and red wine stew so rich, silky, and luxurious you’ll want to bathe in it, I knew I had something to impress the whole family with.
If you've never cooked oxtails, they can look more intimidating than they actually are (which is partially why it took me a few years to work them into my regular repertoire). That's mostly due to the bone at the center, which is rife with collagen and gives stews a smoother, deeper texture and flavor. But with this recipe, the approach is simple: After browning the oxtails in batches, there's little else to do than let them simmer for about three hours with some goldeny-brown chunks of leeks, garlic, and celery, plus one whole bottle of red wine, and skimming the foam off the top every so often.
After that, I pulled the meat from the bones (and tried to not put it directly into my mouth), adding both back into the pot while discarding the fat and cartilage. The step that required the most effort was covering it all up, and sliding it into the fridge. Sure you could skip this step and eat it all then and there, but 12-hours of chilling gives the flavors time to deepen into a thicker, more concentrated bone broth. Plus, it encourages all the fat you won’t want to eat to rise to the surface and congeal, making it super easy to scrape out with a spoon before reheating.
While the fridge worked its magic, I worked on clutch toppings like a salty-herby Panko and a horseradish beet relish, which add an essential punchy, crunchy dimension, and a DIY moment I knew my impossible-to-please aunties would love. And if your family’s anything like mine, that’s one heck of an accomplishment.
