How to Cook Soul Food Oxtails
While soul food is well-known to the African American community, it’s also gaining popularity among people from all walks of life. Oxtails are considered one of the main dishes in this style of cooking, and learning how to cook them can be really rewarding and fun, especially if you have friends over to share the meal with you. Plus, your kitchen will smell amazing as your oxtails cook! Here’s how to cook soul food oxtails.
What are Oxtails?
These aren’t just for soup anymore! Often used as an ingredient in traditional soups, oxtail is actually a bit of a secret weapon. With flavors that are bold and intense, but also pleasantly subtle, oxtail is now making a comeback on restaurant menus. Here are two ways you can cook up these delicious cuts of meat at home and wow your friends and family with some soul food that they won’t soon forget.
The Ingredients
2 lbs of oxtail, 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. There are plenty of soul food restaurants in New York that serve delicious meals all over America. One of those fantastic dishes is soul food oxtail. If you want to learn how to cook soul food oxtail, there are certain ingredients you will need for preparation. The first thing you need is 2 pounds of oxtail. Then measure out and add 2 cups of flour into a deep bowl or tray with a firm grip on your measuring cup so that it doesn’t spill out while measuring. Next add 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper into your mixture once they have been properly measured out as well.
Cooking Tips & Tricks
Before you start, it’s a good idea to decide what sort of dish you want your oxtail stew/casserole to become. Are you going with an African-inspired dish? A Middle Eastern one? Or are you shooting for something completely different? Knowing where your dish is headed will help clarify some of your cooking decisions (i.e., whether or not you want seasonings like cumin, cardamom and saffron), and make your shopping easier. When cooking, quality really matters—using cheap ingredients will often have an adverse effect on taste and texture—so shop at a grocery store that sells fresh meat with high turnover.
Some Awesome Soul Food Recipes with Oxtail
If you’re not sure where to begin, start with some of these famous soul food dishes. They are delicious and classic. It’s impossible to go wrong when cooking up a soul-food favorite like fried chicken or collard greens. The only problem will be figuring out what you want to eat first! Southern-style soul food originated in New Orleans during times of African American slavery in Louisiana.
6 Tips for Successfully Cooking Oxtails
Soul food has a special place in the hearts of many Americans, and no dish embodies soul food better than the humble oxtail. This savory cut of meat from the tail of an ox is packed with meaty flavor, but it’s also notoriously difficult to cook. For this reason, many new cooks are afraid to take on oxtails and wind up ordering them in restaurants instead! But if you follow these simple tips, you’ll be whipping up oxtails like a pro in no time!
1) Preparation
Oxtail is great stew meat because of its low fat content. But unlike a lot of other meats, oxtail needs a bit more prep work before cooking. Before any oxtail recipe can be cooked, they need to be cleaned. Fortunately, it’s not all that difficult: just get a knife and a strong bowl, and peel away the outer layer of fat on each oxtail piece. The good news is that you won’t have to do it much—as long as you cook them immediately afterward, there will still be plenty of time for excess grease to drain off. As soon as you’re done with your prepping, it’s time to cook!
2) Ingredients
1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon each salt and pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of thyme, 1/2 teaspoon of oregano. 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter or vegetable oil. 2 pounds oxtail. Directions: In a shallow dish, combine 1 cup flour with 1 tablespoon each salt and pepper, along with 1⁄2 teaspoon each thyme and oregano. Melt 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or heat up 3 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.
3) Braising
Braising is one of many ways to cook oxtail. It’s a great method because it can add flavor without being too overwhelming, and most braised dishes are packed with vegetables. The best way to start your meal is by marinating your oxtail overnight in an acidic liquid like red wine or lemon juice. This will help tenderize your meat and make it more palatable. Next, when you’re ready to cook, season your meat with salt and pepper, then brown it on all sides using either a sauté pan or an oven-safe casserole dish.
4) When To Stop Braising
As you continue to cook your oxtail in liquid, there are two signs that indicate it’s time to take them out. First, when you press on one with a spoon, it should be tender and spring back. The second is that no more scum is coming off of them. When all of these things have happened, use tongs to carefully remove each tail from its braising liquid; do not shake off or rinse any of it off. Then simply plop them onto a serving dish and serve immediately!
5) Serving
Most recipes call for 6-8 oz. of oxtail per person. So, if you’re cooking just one or two people, you might want to use 3-4 lbs. of meat (or more), or if you’re planning on serving a large group or an event, buying 10 lbs. is a good bet. You can always put some in your freezer until you need it and it’ll last up to 2 months in there before needing to be refrozen after thawing. There are few ways to go about figuring out how much oxtail you need
6) Techniques For Perfection
It’s true that cooking oxtail can be daunting; it’s one of those meals that looks easy to make, but can quickly become a recipe for disaster. The most important thing you can do is follow these tips and keep calm! Don’t panic. For successful oxtail preparation, there are three techniques you need to know: blanching, braising and simmering. All of these techniques are very different from each other in regards to both timing and style, so read carefully and make sure you follow along with my directions carefully. If you don’t properly understand what needs to happen with each step of your recipe, then it might be best to start over and practice on something else before continuing. Let's get started!
Unsalted food is like garbage
THANKS FOR READING MY OPOST ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon