How to make braised oxtail bucatini being served during Black Restaurant Week
It's Black Restaurant Week and to celebrate, a few chefs are sharing some of their specialty dishes that you can cook at home.
Sim Walker, the owner of Apt 4B in Atlanta, joined "Good Morning America" to make his four-hour, slow-braised oxtail with whole spices, paired with fresh bucatini pasta and topped with ribboned scallions and fresh thyme.
Walker, who learned how to cook from his Jamaican mother in her New York City restaurant, said he was determined to open his own that reminded him of his roots.
"We've opened up a concept called apartment durin' a time when people are quarantinin' and spendin' their time at home," he explained.
The business that opened amid the pandemic was born of a chef and partners who all have Caribbean roots.
"I really look at it as we had no other choice. We were already leveraged. We were invested in this space," Walker said. "I would like for America to continue to support Black-owned businesses -- through regular patronage."
Oxtail Bucatini Pasta with Herbs
Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 40 minutes
Total time: 4 hours, 40 minutes
Ingredients
5 pounds of oxtails
2 pounds short ribs
4 pounds of fresh paradelle pasta or substitute with dry bucatini pasta or spaghetti
2 large yellow carrots, small diced
4 stalks of celery, small diced
1 large leek
5 scallions (green onions)
1 large shallot
1 bunch of parsley
1 bunch of cilantro
6 cloves of garlic
1 small bunch of thyme, about 1/4 cup picked off the stems
1 whole scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
4 cups of dry red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon)
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon of ground allspice
5 whole cloves
1 cup of tomato paste
1⁄4 stick of butter
1 cup of olive oil
8 cups of veggie stock (2 quarts)
4 cups of dry red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon)
Salt & Black pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
Roughly chop scallions using only the white part of the onion and save green parts for your garnish. Place garlic, cilantro, parsley, shallots and leeks place in blender with 1⁄4 cup of olive oil blend into a smooth paste like consistency. Place green seasoning mixture also known as “Epis” in a container on the side to season meat.
Season oxtail and short rib with salt and black pepper, add olive oil into a large braising pot to coat the base of the pan. Heat pan on high heat until the oil begins to smoke, then carefully add seasoned oxtails and short rib and sear on both sides (do not crowd pan; if necessary, do a few at a time).
Remove oxtails and short rib from the pan to a separate bowl. Add in a little bit more olive oil and toss in onions. Cook onions until they begin to sweat and turn transparent, then add in chopped celery and carrots. Allow veggies to simmer on medium heat.
In the separate bowl add about 1 1⁄2 cups of the green seasoning mixture Epis to the seared meat and coat all the pieces evenly.
Next, add in all dry spices, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and allspice to the seasoned meat. Carefully add seasoned meat into braising pot with the cooked veggies. Add in tomato paste and mix evenly, add butter and mix evenly. Add in wine and allow ingredients to simmer for about 10 minutes, then add in veggie stock.
Mix well and be sure to scrape the bottom of your pan to incorporate all flavors. Cover braising pan with aluminum foil and lid, and place in the oven and bake for 4 hours at 300 degrees, checking every 45 minutes to an hour to make sure your liquid hasn’t dissolved entirely before the oxtail is cooked.
Remove after 4 hours, allow oxtails to cool. After cooling, carefully skim oil off the top of the pan and use tongs to remove oxtail and short rib bones.
To cook pasta: Fill a stock pot three-fourths of the way with water and a little bit of olive oil and very little salt.
Allow pot to reach a rolling boil and add in fresh pasta and cook for 3-5 minutes. Once pasta is cooked drain pasta and carefully fold into oxtails.
Ribboned scallions: Add ice and water to a bowl, slice the green parts of your scallion length wise as thin as your able. Toss them in the ice water and they will curl!
Serve pasta in your favorite bowl and garnish with the fresh picked thyme and curly ribboned scallions.
