Braised Beef Cheeks in Port & Sherry

Trim the beef cheeks to neaten them up and remove any sinew and silver skin. You can also ask your butcher to do this. Season well with salt and pepper.

Heat half of the olive oil in a large heavy-based pot over high heat. Brown the beef cheeks for 2 minutes on each side, or until golden, then remove them from the pan.

Add the remaining olive oil, then add the carrot, garlic (i just sliced a head of garlic down the middle) and onion and sauté over high heat for 12-15 minutes, or until well browned. Stir in the sherry, port, wine, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, sea salt and water.

Reduce the heat as low as possible, add the beef cheeks, then cover and cook for 3-4 hours, or until the cheeks are beginning to fall apart.

The sauce from the beef cheeks should by now be reduced and glaze-like. If it needs further reducing, remove the cheeks from the pan, cover with foil to keep them warm and simmer the sauce over high heat until nicely reduced. Take out the two halves of garlic, and push some of the garlic bulbs into the sauce. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve and return to the pan; gently reheat the cheeks in the sauce if necessary.

Serve the cheeks and their sauce on warm plates.

Slightly adapted from Movida Rustica.