World Food Spot 9: Vlaamse karbonaden

on Monday, January 14, 2008

I did this. I mean I cooked this. It is one of the few dishes that I do reasonably well. I realise that this photo looks like a pile of *unmentionables* but that is more the fault of my poor photographic skills and poor sense of food presentation than any fault of my cooking. It may look a bit suspect in this photo but trust me, it is delicious. I last cooked this for a Christmas party and suffice to say there were no leftovers and it got many compliments.

My last "World Food Spot" post focused on Belgian beer and this dish is both Belgian (Flemish, to be exact) and uses beer in the recipe. Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you, "Vlaamse karbonaden" or "Beef Braised in Beer".

Recipe:- (to serve 4)

  1. 800 g of topside beef cut into 2.5 cm cubes.
  2. dust with seasoned corn flour.
  3. Fry 2 thinly sliced Spanish Onions in 50 g of butter using low heat until onions are golden in color.
  4. Remove the onions with a slotted spoon and use oil in pan. Raise heat and brown the beef in the oil.
  5. Return onions. Stir over moderate heat. Use some corn starch in water to thicken if necessary.
  6. Gradually pour in 600 mL of dark beer. I used Guiness Stout.
  7. Add bouquet garni consisting of 2 parsley sprigs, 1 thyme sprig, 1 bay leaf.
  8. 1 tablespoon of tarragon wine vinegar.
  9. Add sugar to taste (about 1 tablespoon)
  10. Add Pepper and salt to taste.
  11. Cover and cook on low heat for 1 hour.
  12. Take a slice of brown bread. Remove crust. Spread a tablespoon of dark French Mustard or Honey Dijon Mustard on the bread.
  13. Tear the bread into 3 cm square pieces and add to the pot.
  14. Continue to simmer on low heat for another hour, stirring occasionally and allowing the bread to disintegrate and thicken the stew.
  15. Check taste at end and serve.
The net result is that the beef melts in the mouth and has a mix of bitter and sour taste that works very well the beef flavor. I love this and I recommend this dish highly.

Happy cooking.

15 comments:

tsduff said...

It looks divine... after the first perusal LOL~

I'm on a "hurry up and lose weight" diet, so I can't indulge in your receipe at the moment, but I shall keep it, and one day indulge with pleasure. I love beef, and Guiness... what else could be better? :) Nice post.

Jo said...

Actually, LGS, it looks very good! Thank you for the recipe. I'm going to try it. I actually make beef stew with beer, and it's delicious.

This looks wonderful...!

MedStudentWife said...

yummyyyyyy !!! I am going to have to make this for Fidel - he'll just love int (and so will I :D )

Open Grove Claudia said...

I'll tell you, it does look yucky. But my mouth was totally drooling. What do you think that means? My stomach knows it's awesome or that I... never mind.

meggie said...

No beef for me, but I am sure Gom would like it.

Your Kenya post is so sad.

Marja said...

Hi I am just back from holiday and happy to read your post. I love karbonaden but haven't eaten them in the Belgien way. I did taste a lot of the Belgien beers though when I was young Yum. The best beers are made by the monastries in Belgien

CS said...

Yeah, I'll pass. But to tell you the truth I thought it was either a molasses cookie or some kind of praline, and it was looking pretty good to me!

Claire said...

I thought it looked like peanut brittle. The recipe sounds good especially for a cold rainy day. LGS, you cook too?? Holy cow is your wife lucky!

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

tsduff,
To the day when both of us have lost so much weight, we will think nothing about going for second helpings! Cheers!

josie,
Oooo. Swop this recipe for yours.

msw,
let me know how it goes or goes down as it were.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

claudia,
Hmmmmm. Interesting. Please lie on the couch and tell me what these inkblots remind you of.

meggie,
But who will cook it for GOM?

marja,
welcome back. Yes, food is just another good excuse to consume Belgian beer.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

cs,
please excuse us carnivores. I am glad some of you were not turned off by the picture. Unfortunately, it was the only one I had.

claire,
When we were first married, my wife did not cook at all, I did all the cooking. Today, she is a better cook than I.

Dave said...

I had to put "Vlaamse karbonaden" into Google images to get my appetite back! LOL

It really sounds good and so I will have to try this one out. Thaks for the recipe LGS!

Anonymous said...

There is no other delicious combination like beef and beer!

Gina said...

a sort of Vietnamese Chili? I am SURE it must have been delish!!!

Unknown said...

i was wondering that this picture was of as soon as i saw it, but it's food and not ... unmentionables. :) sounds yummy.

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