Recipe by: Student Chefs Carl Jaan Carbo and Bryan Lee Li from Pius X Career Centre
Stout and Cranberry/Apple Beef Cheeks with Smoked Autumn Spiced Oat Crumble
The bittersweet, chocolatey stout and acidity of the cranberries and apples are the perfect enhancement to the rich, deep flavour of the slow-cooked beef cheeks. Served with a medley of root vegetables, this dish is the perfect “Canadiana” comfort food enjoyed with family and friends.
Preheat Oven: 350F
Set Immersion Circulator at 88C
Prep Time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 24 hours
Total Time: 26 hours
Yield: 6 servings
Sous-Vide Beef Cheeks:
Ingredients
- 6 x 7oz (200 g) beef cheeks trimmed
- 2 cups (473 ml) stout beer
- 3 tbsp (50 ml) canola oil
- ⅓ cup (70 g) Granny Smith apple sliced
- ⅛ cup (20 g) dried cranberry
- ½ cup (150 ml) brown beef stock
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Generously season beef cheeks with salt and pepper and sear on medium high heat with 40ml of canola oil, until browned all over. Set aside to cool.
- Remove the fat from the pan and add remainder of canola oil. Sauté the shallot until softened and deglaze with the stout beer. Add the apple, cranberries and thyme and reduce by half. Set aside to cool.
- Place cooled beef cheeks and stout mixture in a sous vide bag and seal airtight. Place in a water bath with an immersion circulator set to 88C. Cook for 24 hours.
- Once cooked, remove beef cheeks from the bag and place stout jus in a pot and simmer. Reduce until sauce is thickened and coats the back of a spoon. Adjust seasoning and strain.
Notes
Chef’s Note: For a different flavour, substitute stout beer for a Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon. Also, beef cheeks can be braised on the stovetop instead of in an immersion circulator.
Smoked Autumn Spiced Oat Crumble:
Ingredients
- ⅛ cup (20 g) ground oats
- ⅛ cup (20 g) whole oats
- ⅛ cup (20 g) panko
- 2 tsp (10 g) ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp (5 g) each of ground ginger, clove, nutmeg, cardamom and star anise
- 2 tbsp (30 g) brown sugar
- ¼ cup (100 g) melted butter
- 2 tsp (10 g) each of salt & pepper
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients together and mix well.
- Spread on a parchment lined baking sheet and toast in the preheated oven for approximately 10 minutes or until browned.
- Place crumble in a bowl and using a smoke gun, lightly smoke crumble using apple wood chips.
Celeriac & Apple Puree:
Ingredients
- 1 medium sized celery root peeled & diced
- 1 medium sized Yukon gold potato peeled & diced
- 2 Granny Smith apples peeled and diced small (brunoise)
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt
Instructions
- Place the celeriac and potato in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until celeriac and potato are tender. Strain into a bowl and purée with 2 tbsp of butter.
- Lightly sauté apples with the remaining butter and season with salt. Fold into purée.
Hasselback Butternut Squash, Chestnuts and Pearl Onions:
Ingredients
- 1.6 lbs. (750g) butternut squash, peeled and sliced horizontally
- 18 peeled, cooked chestnuts
- 18 pearl onions peeled
- ¼ cup + 3 tbsp (100 g) butter, melted
- 2 tsp (10 g) molasses
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt
Instructions
- Cut butternut squash into 6 rectangles and make even-layered slits, making sure to not cut all the way through.
- Place squash, chestnuts and pearl onions on parchment lined baking sheet with melted butter and thyme and roast in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove chestnuts and onions after 5 minutes.
- Brush butternut squash with molasses and sprinkle with fresh thyme.
Beef fat sautéed Rainbow carrots:
Ingredients
- 12 rainbow carrots various colors, peeled and blanched
- 2 tbsp (30 g) beef fat (made from rendered beef cheek trimmings)
- 3 sprigs of thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat beef fat in a pan and sauté carrots with thyme. Season with salt and pepper.
Parsley Coral Tuile:
Ingredients
- 2 bunches of blanched parsley stems removed
- 100 ml (100 g) water
- 1 tbsp (15 g) flour
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt
- 2 tbsp (30 g) canola oil
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients, except canola oil, using an immersion blender, until smooth.
- Heat a non-stick pan with canola oil and pour in some batter to coat bottom of pan. Cook for a few minutes until dry.
About Cooks the Books 2022
Taste Canada Cooks the Books is a cooking competition that invites Canadian culinary students from across the nation to compete for the title of Canada’s Best New Student Chefs. The 2022 students chefs selected a unique cut of beef for their recipe by exploring a new web-based education tool, the Canadian Beef Information Gateway. The Gateway has information on over 70 cuts of beef with cut descriptions, complete nutrition info per cut, how-to-cook recommendations, over 300+ recipe videos and more.