4 lbs (2KGs) of beef short rib or any other type of fatty meat for slow cooking (shoulder could work too but it has to be a fatty part!). The “good” fat is in the marbling and in between meat layers, if there is bulk fat on the sides you can trim it out.

3 carrots

5-10 garlic cloves

10 shallots

1 bottle of wine

1/4 glass of brandy

3-4 potatoes.

Thyme/rosmary 

Salt pepper to taste.

Brown the meat well in a heavy cast iron pot, on medium heat till it’s nice and brown on all sides, salt and pepper the meat. Take out of the pot. Make sure you don’t have any burnt remainders of the meat at the bottom of the pot, just the nice brown caramels – hence medium and not high heat.

Fry the veggies lightly (not the garlic) for 2-3 minutes in the same pot with the remaining fat and extract the caramels from the bottom of the pot, add a bit of water if needed.

Put everything back in the pot (including the garlic and the thyme/rosemary).

Bring to boiling and remove any foam.

Add the potatoes sliced into 4 or 8 on top. They can be outside the broth, they will cook well in the steam.

Close the lid and put in the oven for 3 hours at 170 celsius, if the sauce gets too evaporated, add some water; if the sauce doesn’t thicken enough, reduce it on the stove after cooking so that it is nice and concentrated (it depends on the sealing of the pot and on how much it allows evaporation in the oven).

“De-grease” the floating fat with a spoon.

Important to use a cast iron pot (Le-Creuset or similar).

Bon appétit!