Oxtail Black Curry with Flatbread

Recipe by Red Team

Try this black oxtail curry with fluffy flatbread and a refreshing charred capsicum salsa.

Steps

• Preheat oven to 180C.
• For the Black Oxtail Curry, prepare the Spice Mix: place ingredients for the spice mix into a medium frypan over medium heat. Toast until fragrant then blend to a powder in a spice grinder. Set aside.
• For the curry, place butter into a saucepan over low heat. Allow to melt then remove from the heat and allow solids to settle in the pan.

• Rub 2 tablespoons Spice Mix and some salt onto oxtail and oyster blade.
• Place 2 tablespoons of the clarified butter into large saucepan over low-medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until caramelised, about 4-5 minutes. Add garlic, peppercorns, bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom.
• Cook for 1 -2 minutes then add remaining spice mix, paprika, cayenne pepper and onion powder. Cook, stirring, until evenly mixed and very fragrant. Add 250ml beef stock and simmer on low heat for 5-7 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer half of the onions and liquid into a pressure cooker.
• Meanwhile, place a large frypan over medium heat. Add oxtail and cook until browned all over. Place into the pressure cooker. Add remaining 250ml beef stock and 500ml water and cook under high pressure for 40 minutes.
• Brown the oyster blade in the frypan then transfer to the onion mixture. Add 250ml water and simmer for 30 minutes and remove from the heat until the oxtail is ready.
• Once oxtail is cooked, transfer contents of the pressure cooker to the oyster blade saucepan. Add the tomatoes and sun dried tomatoes and simmer for a further 30 minutes until oxtail meat is falling off the bones, is very tender and sauce has reduced and thickened.
• Set aside 2/3 cup of the clarified butter for the flatbread. Pour any remaining clarified butter and milk solids to the curry and stir through. Season to taste then remove from the heat and cover with a lid.
• For the Charred Capsicum Salad, cut capsicums in half and remove the seeds. Place into a shallow lined tray and drizzle with olive oil.
• Roast in the oven until well charred, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside, covered with foil.
• Peel and discard skin then slice the flesh and place into a bowl. Mix in the onion, spices, lemon juice, olive oil and salt, to taste. Cover and set aside at room temperature.
• For the Flaky Flatbread, place ingredients, except clarified butter, into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until combined.
• Attach the dough hook and knead the dough for 8-10 minutes.
• Place dough into a small bowl, and drizzle with clarified butter and rest covered with a clean teatowel in warm place for 20 minutes.
• Divide dough into 6-8 small balls. Heat a frypan or cast iron frypan over medium high heat.
• On an oiled benchtop, roll each ball into thin large rounds. Brush with clarified butter then dust lightly with flour. Make a cut from the center to one edge then starting with a cut edge, roll into cone shape. Stand on end then flatten slightly and roll to roughly 5mm thickness. Take care not to flatten out layers or roll too thinly.
• Cook each round in the hot pan, adding a little clarified butter and flipping often until dough is cooked through and dark spots appear on each side.
• Remove flatbread from the pan and place onto a clean worksurface. Clap the flatbread between your hands, from the outside into center in one swift motion to separate the layers and create flakiness. Cook and repeat process with remaining rounds of dough, wiping out pan as needed.
• For the Yoghurt, mix ingredients in a small bowl and set aside in the fridge until required.
• To serve, ladle curry into bowls, add a spoonful of yoghurt and top with charred capsicum salsa. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve with flaky flatbread on the side.

Ingredients

Black Oxtail Curry – Spice Mix

• 2 tbsp cumin seeds
• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 1½ tsp black peppercorns
• 1½ tsp white peppercorns
• 2 cardamon pods
• 2 cloves
• pinch freshly grated nutmeg

Black Oxtail Curry

• 250g butter
• 1kg oxtail pieces
• 500g oyster blade, diced 2-3cm
• 2 large onions, peeled, thinly sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled, pureed
• 2 tsp black peppercorns
• 5 bay leaves
• 3 cloves
• 3 sticks cinnamon
• 8 cardamon pods
• 2 tbsp sweet paprika
• 3 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 500ml beef stock
• 750ml water
• 1 x 400g can diced tomatoes
• 200g canned cherry tomatoes
• 6 sun dried tomatoes

Charred Capsicum Salsa

• 4 small red and yellow capsicums
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ¼ red onion, finely sliced
• 1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted, ground
• 1 tsp coriander seeds, toasted, ground
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Flaky Flatbread

• 1 ½ cups wholemeal flour
• 2/3 cup plain flour, plus extra to dust
• pinch salt
• 2/3 cup lukewarm water
• 2/3 cup clarified butter, melted
• vegetable oil, for oiling bench

Yoghurt

• 500g plain Greek yoghurt
• juice 1 lemon
• salt and pepper, to taste
• parsley, to garnish