Main Meals

Slow-braised oxtail

By
07 November 2025
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4
Easy
45 minutes
3 ½ to 4 hours

“Melt-in-the-mouth tender, this oxtail ragù is served on creamy, roasted cannellini beans enriched with Parmesan, and finished with a zesty ClemenGold gremolata''

Wine/Spirit Pairing
Spier Creative Block 5

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Ingredients

Method
  • 1.2 kg oxtail, cut into segments
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 onions, roughly chopped
  • 3 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 celery sticks, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 T tomato paste
  • 1 x 400 g whole tomatoes can
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 cups beef stock (or enough to cover)
  • For the Parmesan cannellini beans:

  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 2 x 400 g cannellini beans cans, drained and rinsed
  • ¾ cup vegetable stock
  • ½ cup cream
  • 40 g Parmesan, finely grated
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • For the ClemenGold gremolata:

  • 1 ClemenGold, zested (or any sweet mandarin)
  • 2 T Italian parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic small clove, finely grated
  • olive oil
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste, to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Season the oxtail generously with salt and pepper. Heathe oil in a large ovenproof saucepan over a medium-high heat. Brown the oxtail all over, then remove from the pan and set aside.

2. In the same pan, sauté the onions, carrots, celery and garlic until softened. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, bay leaves and oxtail. Pour in the stock to just cover.

3. Bring to a simmer, cover and transfer to the oven and bake for 3½–4 hours, until the meat is tender and falling from the bone.

4. To make the beans, heat the olive oil in a pan and gently cook the garlic until fragrant. Stir in the beans and stock. Simmer for 10 minutes, then stir in the cream. Transfer to a small baking dish, scatter with Parmesan and bake uncovered at 200°C for 15–20 minutes until golden and bubbling.

5. To make the gremolata, mix the zest, parsley, garlic and olive oil. Season to taste.

6. To serve, spoon the beans onto warm plates, top with the oxtail and a spoonful of its juices, then finish with the gremolata.

Cook's note: The Parmesan topping gives the beans a good crust – don't skip it.

Find more beef recipes here 

Photographer: Myburgh Du Plessis

Food assistant: Bianca Jones

Abigail Donnelly

Recipe by: Abigail Donnelly

Nothing excites Woolworths TASTE's Food Director quite as much as the challenge of dreaming up recipes with innovative new foods – or the thrill of creating deliciousness on a plate with the humblest of ingredients. With Abi by your side, you’ll be a cooking expert in no time at all.

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