Recipes Using Ground Beef - Spanish Style

This is a Spanish-Style Mince dish - it is one of the easy recipes using ground beef. It is really simple to put together but this is the secret...it has to be baked for a long time in a medium oven. This allows the spices and other ingredients to mingle and the dish to take on an intense flavor. Once the dish has cooked, I often leave the casserole dish in the oven overnight - the result is a meltingly rich, delicious dish.

People say that they can knock up recipes using ground beef in minutes - in my book, it is simply not possible. However, this one-pot dish makes two meals, one that you can eat now and one that you can freeze, so it is well worth the effort. This is also a great dish for a casual dinner party - served with tacos, tortillas and guacamole, it makes for informal, fun entertaining.

Our recipes using ground beef have the further advantage of being budget-wise.

Whilst this Spanish Style Mince dish contains spices, it is very mild, and our kids love it.

Ingredients:

You will need a large pan or casserole dish with a lid that can be used on top of the hob and inside the oven.

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 300° F / 150° C.
2. On top of the hob, brown the minced meat in about 6 batches over a high heat. The meat needn't cook through, but it should look browned and fried. This is what gives flavor to the dish. (You don't want to put too much minced meat into the pan at a time, otherwise your oil loses heat and you just get a grey, watery mass of meat. Keep the meat aside.
3. Fry the onions in one batch, until they are soft and a brown, caramel color. This, too, flavors the dish.
4. Add the garlic and peppers to the onions and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
5. Add the cumin, paprika and cayenne pepper. Add the meat back to the pan. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste.
6. Add the beef stock. Place a lid on the casserole dish and put in the oven. Cook for about 2 hours on a low heat, checking every half an hour that the mixture hasn't got too dry. Add water if necessary. You will notice that the gravy browns at the side of the casserole - scrape this down and stir into the minced meat. Once the 2 hours are up, turn the oven off and leave the dish inside the oven. I have often done this overnight - but if you don't have time, a couple of hours will do. This is not obligatory, but just adds to the richness of the dish.

*If you are NOT using lean mince, it is advisable to make this dish in advance, following the instructions above. Then, cool the casserole in the refrigerator. The fat will solidify on top of the dish. Skim this off and discard. Then reheat or freeze the dish as you wish.

Serving suggestions:

Freezing:

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