Oxtail gyoza dish

Today we're going to make a delicious oxtail gyoza dumpling dish, it has a braised oxtail filling with kumquat, caramelized shallot and a beautiful oxtail broth.

The kumquat gel

300 grams	kumquat
150 grams	water
50 grams	sugar
5 grams	agar powder

Turn on your barbeque and let the kumquat caramelize on a metal tray for around 5 minutes. Then let then cool down for a couple of minutes and remove the stem. Once that’s done cut them in half and gently remove the seeds. Now transfer then into a blender and also add the water and the sugar. Blend this till smooth. Then press it through a fine sieve using a ladle. This so you don’t waste a single drop of the kumquat. After that add the agar powder and give it a good mix. Then while mixing bring it to a boil for 1 minute. Now pour it into a bowl and let it cool down completely in your fridge. Then transfer it into a blender and blend it till smooth. Once it’s smooth check for seasoning, for me it needed a touch of salt. Now blend it once more and then you can keep it in your fridge for later.

While the barbeque is still on and hot, I also smoked some salt. Just pour some on a tray, put it on the barbeque and let it sit for a couple of hours till cold. It’s going to give the salt a really nice toasted aroma and that’s perfect for the dish I’m making today.

The oxtail

2 liters	water
100 grams	nitrite salt
2 kg	oxtail
3 big	shallots
0.5 liter	jus de veau or demi-glace
	Beefstock
1 spring	rosemary
2 springs	oregano
2 springs	sage
4 springs	thyme
6 cloves	garlic

Pour the water into a big pot and add the nitrite salt. Then mix it well till all the salt is dissolved. Now add the oxtail. Make sure it’s completely submerged with the water and then let it brine for 24 hours in your fridge. After that remove the oxtail from the water and let it airdry for 30 minutes. Then heat up a big pan, add a splash of oil and fry the oxtail golden brown on all sides. It’s okay if it doesn’t fit all at once, just repeat this process then. Meanwhile clean the shallots and chop them. Then once all the oxtail is fried remove it from the pan and start caramelizing the shallot till golden. Once golden deglaze the pan with the jus de veau or demi-glace. Then add the oxtail and submerge it completely with beef stock. Also add the rosemary, the oregano, the sage, the thyme and the garlic. Then bring it to a boil, put a lid on top and cook it in an oven of 85 degrees Celsius for 12 hours. You can also do this sous-vide. After that when still hot transfer the oxtail on a plateau and start separating the meat from the fat, bones and membranes. You can keep the small bits of fat for flavor, but the big chucks I do remove. Once that’s done put the cooking liquid through a fine sieve and reduce this till half on a low simmer. While it’s reducing scoop of all the fat with a ladle. Then put it through a fine sieve laid with a kitchen paper to clarify it completely. Now bring it to a boil and season it with a rich balsamic vinegar. Check for seasoning once more. Then transfer the oxtail meat into a saucepan and season it with some of the broth. Now heat it up on a medium heat. Then also add a tablespoon of the kumquat gel to give it a fresh note. Mix it well and then let it cool down out of the fridge.

The gyoza dough

250 grams	flour
140 grams	lukewarm water
2 grams	salt

Pour the flour onto your worktop and use the bowl to make a well in the middle. Fill it with the lukewarm water and the salt. Gently mix this and then knead it into a nice dough. Now wrap it tight and let it rest in your fridge for at least 30 minutes. After that cover your worktop with rice flour and divide the dough into small pieces of 15 grams. Now roll the dough into a small balls and then use a rolling pin to flatten it out. Once it’s done tighty up the edges with a round cutter. Then use a brush or your finger to add a thin layer of water. Now put the oxtail filling in the middle. Then press the middle together and gently fold it in four times to the outside on both sides. Give the edges a good press. Now transfer them onto a tray and keep them cover in your fridge for later.

The caramelized shallot cream

600 grams	shallots
40 grams	sherry vinegar
300 grams	beef stock
	Balsamic vinegar

First cut the shallots in half and clean them. Now chop them. Then heat up a big frying pan, add a splash of oil and caramelized the shallots on a medium heat with a generous amount of salt. Once the shallots are nice and golden deglaze the pan with the sherry vinegar. This will increase the dept of the flavor. Then add the beef stock and gently reduce the liquid till almost everything has vaporized. After that transfer it into a blender and blend it till smooth. Once it’s smooth check for season and when necessary, season with some salt and the same balsamic vinegar that we’ve just used. Now transfer it into a bowl and keep it covered in your fridge for later.

The garnish

Now take a kumquat and cut it with a sharp knife into super thin slices. Then put a piece of blanched chive on your worktop and put some winter purslane on top. Knot this together and wrap the chives around it. Then trim the bottom and keep it in your fridge for later.

How to finish the dish

First heat up a frying pan, add a splash of oil and fry the gyoza’s on the flat side till golden. Then turn them 90 degrees and add a splash of vegetable broth or water. Directly put a lid on top and let it steam for 1 minute. Then remove them from the pan. Put two gyoza’s in the middle of a plate and pipe a big dot of the hot shallot cream on the side. Then pipe two smaller dots of the kumquat gel on there as well. Now decorate it with the kumquat slices and the winter purslane. And then finally finish it off with the oxtail broth.