So many of our dishes are served with a red wine sauce because it’s such a great flavour enhancer. The first version of our recipe is the full-on one we make in our kitchens – it takes 2 days and uses some great ingredients to produce a deeply rich sauce that gives a superb depth to meaty meals. The second is easier to manage, and a rather more convenient option for a mid-week meal.
Red wine sauce: the “cheffy” one
Makes two litres.
Ingredients:
Day 1
- 5kg (11lb) chicken wings
- 2 onions, cut in half
- 1 celery stick, cut into chunks
- 2 carrots, cut into chunks
- rapeseed oil
- 1 garlic bulb, cloves peeled
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons tomato purée
- 250ml (9fl oz) red wine
- 1 veal foot, split
Day 2
- 2kg (4lb 8oz) beef trimmings, diced
- rapeseed oil
- 1 carrot, roughly diced
- 1 onion, roughly diced
- 1 celery stick, roughly diced
- 250ml (9fl oz) red wine
- 2 pigs’ trotters
- 2 tomatoes, halved
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
- 2 bay leaves
Method:
Day 1…
Preheat the oven to 240°C, 200°C fan (475°F), gas mark 9. Roast the chicken wings for 40 minutes until dark brown in colour. At the same time, colour the cut sides of the onions in a hot, dry pan until dark and caramelised.
Add a little more oil to the pan and then fry the chunks of celery and carrots with the onion until they’re dark brown. Add the garlic, herbs and tomato purée. Deglaze with the red wine, add the chicken wings and veal foot with cold water.
Bring to a simmer and keep on a low heat, uncovered, for at least 6 hours, skimming the fat off the top using a ladle. If it starts boiling too quickly, add some ice to cool it down.
Turn off and leave to cool for 30 minutes before passing the liquid through a fine sieve (lined with muslin if you have it).
Day 2…
Heat the brown chicken stock you made yesterday until reduced by half and set aside.
In small batches, fry the beef trimmings in a very hot pan with a little oil until they are well caramelised all over. Take out the beef and leave it to one side for the fat to drain off after each batch is coloured. In the same pan, fry the carrot, onion and celery until golden brown.
Deglaze the pan with the wine and heat to reduce by half. Add the reduced chicken stock and pig’s trotters to this pan and start gently reducing it down again. Skim off the fat that forms around the edge of the pan. Don’t boil too rapidly or it will make your sauce cloudy.
The sauce is ready when it coats the back of a spoon or holds the line when you draw your finger across it. Strain the meat and veg out through a muslin-sieve and discard, then put the sauce back on the heat, to clear once more before turning off.
Add the tomatoes and herbs and leave to infuse for 20 minutes before straining a final time. Refrigerate and use as required.
Red wine sauce: the “cheaty” one
Serves 4 people
Ingredients:
- 250ml (9fl oz) red wine
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 500ml (18fl oz) beef stock
- 4 heaped teaspoons gravy granules (preferably Bisto)
Method:
Heat the red wine in a pan, adding the sprigs of thyme and rosemary and the crushed garlic. Bring to the boil then turn down to a simmer until it is reduced by half.
Add in the beef stock and gravy granules to thicken.
Then pretend you did the other version.
