Beefy braised oxtail cooked low and slow in a Mexican chili-based sauce for a comforting and rich Sunday dinner.
The sauce is deeply flavorful and complex with a mild heat and earthy character similar to a mole.
Beef oxtail is big in Southern households as well as Asian and Caribbean cultures. A slow braise in a rich sauce is the most common way to prepare them.
It is the sauce that provides the opportunity to put your own flavor spin on braised oxtail I've tried and cooked different versions but was feeling something on the Mexican tip this time around.
The super savory sauce renders a tender oxtail with a delicious flavor.
MOOD MUSIC
Oxtail no matter the flavor is a deeply comforting dish. It's also heavy and rich in flavor. Blues and braising go together like grits and gravy.
Albert King's "I'll Play The Blues For You" is the perfect braised oxtail track; it's familiar and the guitar playing is top-notch - consistent with the technique required for braising and transforming rough cuts of meat to tender results.
The vocals are on point too and are what elevates the song even more in the same way the sauce does in this dish.
Braised Oxtail Ingredients
- Oxtails
- Mexican Chorizo (optional)
- Dried Whole ancho chilis
- Dried Whole guajillo chilis
- Chipotle chilis packed in adobo sauce
- Canola or Olive Oil
- Yellow Onion
- Celery
- Carrots
- Garlic cloves
- Ground cumin
- Ground coriander
- Smoked sweet paprika
- Dried oregano
- Rice vinegar
- Chicken stock or beef broth
- Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
- Whole bay leaf
Cooking Instructions
Make the Chili Paste
To make the paste you will need to first remove the seeds and stems then re-hydrate the chilis. I like to toast the chilis first in a heavy bottom skillet and then let them soak in a large bowl of hot water for 10-15 minutes.
Place the re-hydrated chilis in a blender with the chipotles and a few tablespoons of their sauce. Add about ¼ - ½ cup of the re-hydrating liquid and puree until smooth.
Brown the Oxtails
Pre-heat a large dutch oven pot to medium-high heat then add the oil. Season the oxtail pieces well with salt and pepper then brown on all sides and remove.
Braise the Oxtails
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees F.
Add the onions, celery, carrots, and garlic to the pot and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add half the spices about half way through the saute step stirring as needed with a wooden spoon.
If making this dish with the optional ground chorizo, add the chorizo here at this point and brown fully.
Add the beef stock and vinegar deglazing the bottom of the pot scraping up any crusty browned bits left behind from the browning and saute steps.
Add the chili paste and remaining spices plus bay leaves. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Add the browned oxtail meat back to the pot. Cover the pot with the lid and then place oxtail in the oven. Allow to cook slowly 3-4 hours until oxtails are super tender.
Remove the pot from the oven to your cooktop. Using a slotted spoon transfer oxtails from the pot and set aside. Heat the pot with the remaining sauce on high heat and reduce to thicker consistency. Serve the oxtails with the sauce and rice.
Braised Oxtail Variations
For instant pot cooking follow similar recipe steps utilizing the “saute” function. Pressure cook on high 40 minutes, then naturally release for 20 minutes.
Slow cooker is another option. The key adjustment will be browning the oxtails and the vegetables in a separate skillet before adding everything to the crockpot/slow cooker. The browning step is a major flavor enhancement and can’t be achieved via crockpot.
Beef Braising Tips
Be sure to remove the seeds before making the chili paste, otherwise the dish will be quite fiery and not a pleasurable experience unless that’s your thing.
Don’t skip the browning step. This is critical as browning equals caramelization equals flavor intensified and locked in.
A nice red wine is a great flavor enhancer to the braising liquid. I include it as optional as oxtails themselves are already expensive, so didn’t want to add unnecessarily to the overall costs of the dish.
A heavy lid is key to braising. If you don’t have one place a sheet of parchment paper between the pot and the lid.
You can braise the oxtails on the stovetop instead of the oven if preferred. Just be sure to keep things at a low simmer throughout.
Cooking oxtails can leave you with a lot of excess fat in the cooking liquid. To remove much of it use a paper towel to soak up as much of it as you can.
If you’re looking for a substitute for oxtails beef shanks will be your best bet. Oxtails are quite gelatinous which makes them perfect for long slow cooking. Shanks have big thick bones which and are similar but not the same.
Serve these with mashed potatoes, white rice like this coconut rice dish, or go Caribbean recipe style and add canned butter beans to the last 20 minutes of cook time.
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Ingredients
- 2 pounds oxtails
- 1 lb chorizo optional
- 3 whole ancho chile seeds and stem removed
- 3 whole guajillo chile seeds and stem removed
- 3 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 medium onion finely diced
- 2 medium carrots peeled and diced
- 4 whole cloves garlic smashed
- 2 ribs celery diced
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ tablespoon smoked sweet paprika
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 4 whole chipotle chilis packed in adobo roughly chopped with 2 tablespoons adobo sauce
- ¼ cup rice vinegar
- 1 pint chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 whole bay leaves
Instructions
Make the paste
- Remove the stems and seeds from the dry chilis. Add chilies to large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or stock pot and cook over medium-high heat until slightly darkened with intense, roasted aroma, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not allow to smoke. Remove chilies to small bowl and set aside. Cover the chiles with water and then top with small saucer to keep chiles submerged
- Add the rehydrated chilis, ¼ - ½ cup of their liquid, the chipotle chilies plus a tablespoon of the sauce and puree until smooth.
Prepare the oxtails
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Season oxtails with salt and pepper. Pre-heat large dutch oven pot on medium heat. Add oil and then brown the oxtails on all sides. Remove and set aside.
- Add the onions, celery, carrots, and garlic then saute 2-3 minutes. Halfway through add quarter of the spices and mix well.
- If including the chorizo in the recipe add it here at this step and brown fully.
- Add the broth and vinegar, deglazing the bottom of the pot by scraping up the brown bits. Add the paste, the remaining spices, and the bay leaves. Mix well and add the oxtails back. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover with heavy lid and place in the oven. Braise 3-4 hours until fork tender.
- Once done, remove the oxtails and reduce the remaining sauce on the stovetop over high heat. Serve over the oxtails.
Jim
Sunday 24th of April 2022
The ingredients mention chorizo but it is never used? And carrots and celery are in the picture but never mentioned?
Marwin Brown
Sunday 24th of April 2022
Hi Jim thanks for calling these out. I'm actually in the process of updating a few older recipes including this one. The chorizo is an optional ingredient. I actually like the addition and use it when cooking this dish for me, but it does add to the calorie and fat content so if you prefer not to be completely over the top with the recipe then exclude. Carrots and celery should be included in the saute step up front along with the onions and garlic.