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Oxtail & Lamb Bánh Mì

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I do most of my heavy reflection about the New Year in September when the summer tapers off and fall quietly steals all the glory. That leaves me with more of a celebratory rather than contemplative feeling during the holidays. I do like to remember how and where the year began and how and where it’s ending. The ways in which I’ve grown and changed. Lessons learned, stories unfolded and unfolding. While outwardly much seems the same, it’s amazing to observe the patterns in our lives, who we reach for and when, how our feelings morph, grow and congeal. Rinse, repeat. I try to acknowledge any sense of regret (non, rien rien) and let it inform my goals. I appreciate any sense of accomplishment and remain grateful to all those who helped me get there. I try to look forward with excitement, less at the whim of the weather and more like a tour de force.

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This time of year always has me running around, feeling rushed, behind and cold. I decided to carve out some quiet time for a slow-simmering braise, to take a moment to appreciate the whimsical symmetry of ginger root and the natural shapes of spices. I needed something that would make me mindful of the time it takes to create and nurture something truly superlative. Something to warm the bones.  A fusion of cultures and time. With a flair of cilantro.

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Bánh mì is a Veitnamese-style baguette sandwich filled with a different variety of braised meats (grilled pork, pork belly, pate, beef, chicken, lamb), cucumber, shredded carrots and daikon, cilantro, scallions and chili peppers. When the French colonized Vietnam in the late 1800’s, they brought their french style baguettes with them. So this traditionally Asian meal went into a baguette.

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The only time I’ve ever had oxtail was in stew. And oh and it makes a wonderful stew. Throw in a delicate amount of the perfumed, complementary flavors of star anise and cloves and let the marrow do its job, adding an intensely rich and deep flavor. I have been eyeing these sparse beauties at my butcher’s shop for a while, always passing them up for a more familiar cut of meat or a piece of fish. When they permeated my dreams, I knew it was time.

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Important question: What is an ox? Sancho Panza’s donkey comes to my mind for some reason, faithful servant of Don Quixote. Practicality tempering idealism.  But, alas, I don’t think we eat donkeys. Then I figured it was likely a cow. A little research reveals that an ox is a castrated adult male bovine, more commonly known as a steer. A cow is an adult female bovine. A little more digging revealed that today tails simply come from beef cattle of both genders. Sancho’s donkey is safe.

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Braising is a cooking technique in which you first sear meat at a high temperature on the stove top, creating a nice brown crust then placing the food in a covered pot with a braising liquid for a couple hours. Don’t skip the browning part. It comes from the magical Maillard reaction that occurs when sugars and proteins are heated together. It’s one of life’s great luxuries. To get a good sear, dry your meat. The drier the better. Use a very hot pan and a little bit of oil with a high smoking point, like canola oil. I use rice wine for the braise, which can be found in an Asian market. I also use beef stock, a touch of soy sauce, brown sugar, star anise, and cloves. Sweet, malty, salty, syrupy. I cannot say enough about this braise, but you can braise meat in just about anything. The process softens the toughest cuts of meat because it breaks down the tough connective tissue and renders meat tender and flavorful. The kind of succulent meat that melts off the bones.

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While the concoction simmers, make the accompaniments. All of them. Throw in a load of laundry, start that book you were excited about. Change into your gym clothes. Engage in all of the wonderful things that bring you joy because happiness isn’t just connected with the season. That’s excitement. The stuff that lasts is connected to balance, fulfillment, strength and persistence. Happy holidays. Stay where the light is and may it shine on everything around you.

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Oxtail and Lamb Bánh Mì adapted from Feasting at Home 

Makes about 8 small sandwiches.

Ingredients:

Vietnamese Braised Oxtail and Lamb

  • 5 to 6 pounds oxtails, fat trimmed
  • 1 lb lamb rib, fat trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 3 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 C beef stock
  • 1/2  cup Rice wine or Red Wine or Dry Sherry
  • 1/3 cup soy sauce 
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar 
  • 2 star anise, broken into pieces 
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 1 onion – chopped big
  • 3 inches -sliced fresh ginger 
  • 6 whole garlic cloves, peeled 

Pickled Carrots and Daikon

  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 1 cup shredded Diakon
  • 2 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Spicy Mayo

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 2-3 tablespoon sriracha chili sauce
  • squeeze lime
  • pinch salt

Extras

  • Cucumbers, scallions, fresh jalapenos, French baguettes

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Directions:

For the Oxtail and Lamb

Pre heat oven to 300 F. Trim fat off the oxtails and lamb. Generously salt and pepper all sides and patiently brown all sides of oxtail in large dutch oven in canola oil. Set aside browned oxtail. Repeat for lamb then remove. Pour out the oil and fat. In the same dutch oven, sauté onion, whole garlic and ginger slices about 6-8 minutes till browned. Add Rice wine, scraping up all the brown bits. Bring to a boil. Add beef stock, sugar, soy sauce, cloves and star anise. Place oxtail back in the liquid, marrow pointing up. Place lamb pieces around the oxtail. Liquid should come to 3/4 the height of the oxtail. Cover and bring to a boil. Place into the 300 degree oven. Cook 1 1/2 hours, turn oxtails over and cook another 1 1/2 hours. Remove oxtails, strain braising liquid and place the strained liquid in a container for about an hour in the freezer. Fat with rise to the top and harden. This will allow you to remove the fat. (you could skip this step, but it’s worth it). Remove bones from the oxtail meat and place all the meat in a skillet with the de-fatted braising liquid, and heat on the stove. Taste for salt. Meat will be sticky and succulent, almost caramelized.

For the PICKLED CARROTS AND DAIKON

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and let stand 30 min

For the SPICY MAYO

Mix all ingredients in a small bow

assembly

Spread baguette with spicy mayo, place oxtail on the bottom, then cucumbers, pickled veggies, cilantro, scallions and fresh jalapeño.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mad Dog

    That’s a wonderful thing to do with oxtail, which I normally cook as a casserole. I’m sorry to tell you though, that donkey is on the menu in quite a few countries, including Spain:
    http://erikras.com/2011/02/12/spanish-burrito-eating-donkey-in-cantabria/
    I’ve tried Italian donkey salami, which is very good – “Je ne regrette rien” (as Keith Richards famously said, back in the 70s, quoting Edith Piaf).
    I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year – I really enjoy your recipes and words 🙂

    • Amanda

      Thanks so much, MD. I look forward to your comments. So sancho panza’s donkey isn’t safe? I bet it tastes good. Hmm an oxtail casserole? You’ll have to post the recipe! This was fabulous. It took hours, but was so worth the time. I’ll have you know i was quoting edith not keith! Have a wonderful holiday. All the best to you md.

        • Amanda

          Lol. So funny. Why am I not surprised by your affinity for horse meat? Ohh your oxtail recipe looks amazing. You use a lot of similar steps. So good. I have a lot of eating to do!

          • Mad Dog

            If you go to France or Belgium (where it’s particularly popular), I urge you to try it, but do go to the Chevaline (horse butcher) and ask for the best steak 😉

    • Amanda

      Thank you so much. It’s an undertaking, but well worth it. If you make oxtail any other way you may as well keep going and turn it into the best sandwich ever! 🙂 Thanks so much for all of you lovely comments. Have a wonderful holiday and New Year.

  4. Sofia

    Yeah I’m donkeys will be safe . What a beautiful post Amanda, thanks for all the tips and techniques. I’ll be putting them into practice, along with taking advantage of the time to do other things. Felices fiestas, besos!

  6. Chaya

    this looks absolutely delicious, and basically has me craving banh mis, right now, this second! I’m a little wary of oxtail (and tongue and offal, and pretty much all the not so commonly used meats) so what would you recommend instead? Beef?

    • Amanda

      Thanks, Chaya. Yes, I’d use beef short ribs. That would be perfect! You’re going to love it. So good! So nice to hear from toy as always! Xo

  7. Fae's Twist & Tango

    – Cooking oxtail and lamb together is new to me and so intriguing. You prepared/cooked in perfection! I never had banh mi, but I can taste it in my imagination how wonderful it must be. For my New Year post, I also am making daikon and carrot side, cut a little differently but seasoned very similarly. It is one of the auspicious dishes of Japanese New Year.
    – Based on your narrative, I am not clear if you celebrate any Holy Days at this time of the year, but I am sure, you do enjoy the holiday atmosphere. Therefore, I would like to wish you and yours Happy Days for the rest of the year and Happy, Healthy 2015 with lots of Love and Wonders the year brings, dear Amanda! <3

    • Amanda

      Thanks so much, Fae. You’re right. I don’t celebrate Christmas, but my husband does. And new years is secular and fun. You’re absolutely correct. Thanks for the lovely well wishes. I love posts that focus on auspicious cultural foods and can’t wait to see your post. So funny how our last couple of posts are similar but different. Happy festive holidays to you and yours as well and a new year filled with joy, health and wonder to you for 2015. Xo

  9. Darya

    Well, this looks amazing! I’ve never cooked oxtail, and it is a really cheap cut, I should think about it next time I go to the butcher’s! Oh, and I’ve never eaten a banh mi in my entire life. I’ve seen them on blogs, but I have no idea where I could get a good one in Lille or Paris (though I bet it is possible, since the use of baguette as a basis for the sandwich comes from the French presence in South-East Asia, it would be strange not to be able to find a good banh mi in France!). I guess I should just make one myself.
    And Mad Dog is right about eating donkey (and horse). I’ve only had Corsican donkey sausage (which I suspect is mixed with pork), but here in Northern France horse meat is quite common. Every decent butcher sells fresh horse meat here, so if you are interested, you really must visit (yet another reason to visit 😉 ), I’ll take you to my AMAZING butcher’s and we’ll have horse steak or make horse burgers (or tartare… ugh). Happy holidays!

    • Amanda

      Wow, Darya. I guess there is a first for everything. You with oxtail and me with horse. This was my first time cooking oxtail and it turned it so well. If you make this recipe there is no need to find a banh mi in lille.
      One of the best banh mi I’ve had in the city is at boloud’s epicerie. I always wondered why a french place would be selling lamb and foigras banh mi. Now i know. So good! I will say this is a first where someone had tempted me to visit with horse meat. I have to admit. It’s a great thing to be tempted by food. 😉 Merry Christmas!

  10. platedujour

    This looks absolutely fabulous and I know what you mean when you talk about braising meat. I had some very often in Chinese restaurants, mostly in Dublin and in Australia, but here in Lux where I live now I can forget about it. This meat when braised properly is exactly as you say mouth melting- delicious! Great recipe. Happy Holidays xx 🙂

    • Amanda

      Thanks so much. There is something magical that happens to the meat during that second hour. Interesting that Luxemburg doesn’t have a braising tradition. You’ll have to do it yourself. I hope you’re having a lovely holiday and that your home is filled with warm bread.

  12. Fig & Quince

    When I want to carve out some quiet time for a slow-simmering pleasure of blog reading I come to yours! Any thing with star anise makes me a little wistful and a little dreamy and your concoction looks so yummy! So I wanted to say that, and also: Happy Holidays!

  14. milkandbun

    Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday season to you and your family my dearest blogo-friend! <3 Looking forward to read more yummy and interesting posts from you in the coming year! 🙂 xoxo

    • Amanda

      Thanks, daniel. I really appreciate your comment and totally agree. This was my first time using it, but I’m starting to realize how to treat all the different cuts of meat. Enjoy!

  17. Michelle

    Oh, how I wish I had one of those for lunch. Aren’t oxtails great? Though I came from a family of farmers (and when I was a child my father even raised beef cows), I never had them until I met Steve. I don’t know what happened to all those tails from my dad’s cows!

    • Amanda

      So funny. I had no idea what a farm girl you are! I don’t know if it’s a cut used in America often. I really like the way you guys eat. Happy holidays!

  18. Liz

    Your post made me smile, Amanda 🙂 Love the thoughts that came through. Yes to all of it. And what a delicious meal!! Craving protein especially this time of year after so many sweets.

  19. love in the kitchen

    Here I am Amanda – on the second last day of the year – rising up, rinsing and repeating. What a year. I’m hoping for a few smoother months ahead and love your advice to stay with the light.
    These sandwiches may be the most tempting thing I’ve ever seen. I have such fond memories of oxtail stew from my childhood – that luscious rich tasty meat simmered forever – falling off the bone and melting in my mouth. And here combined as you have with lamb and coriander and pickled vegetables and spicy mayo. Simply epic. With this – you could start a restaurant.
    Happiest of New Years to you Amanda. Looking forward to everything you do in 2015. Keep your face to the light. Rinse and repeat and repeat again… xo

    • Amanda

      Thank you for your beautiful comment, Lindy. This whole blog thing has expanded my horizons. May you have a wonderful new year and may time be your most friendly monster, neutralizing the not so good and bringing with it all good things, new lessons, friends and joy for your 2015. Xoxo

  20. Karen

    I love banh mi sandwiches and your version with the ox tail and lamb sounds succulent and delicious. Looking forward to what you will share with us in 2015. Happy New Year.

  21. thejameskitchen

    Amanda, how fabulous are these oxtail Banh Mi? Wow, the stew on its own is already jumping off the screen and wreaks havoc with my new year plans. Happy New Year, to a new year of lovely stories and great food!
    Ah, I was a little hesitant telling you about donkey in Sardinia and tasty Italian donkey salami but that has already happened. N xx

    • Amanda

      Thanks so much, Nicole. I love your sweet comments. So funny that I’ve never had donkey. I may have to travel more this year. Happy new year to you. Looking forward to your recipes and writing!