I love oxtails and cook them often. There is no secret. Oxtails just need to be slowly simmered for 3 to 4 hours. Six to eight hours is overkill. They are fall apart tender long before that.

I never cook with just water. I always use beef or chicken broth.

Serve them over polenta,

spaetzel,

noodles, mashed potatoes or even rice.

Oxtails
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3 pounds oxtails (I Prefer the smaller ones)
1 onion chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled,
Salt
Pepper
Fresh rosemary minced
1 or 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
1 cup red wine
Beef broth (enough to cover meat)

Brown oxtails in small batches so that they brown and don't steam.

Remove from pan and add chopped onions, carrots and celery. Brown vegetables and add the head of peeled garlic cloves,

Add red wine, beef broth, chopped fresh rosemary, salt, pepper and a squirt of tomato paste. Cover and simmer until the oxtails are tender. Remove oxtails. Skim off fat and then whisk using a stick blender to puree the liquid with the vegetables to thicken the sauce.

I suspect the tomato paste may have some to do with it. Having enough so the acid in the tomatoes can work at the meat to make it tender. I'd be real tempted to toss in one real tomato or two. Some tomatoes have more acid then others and flavors have a wide range of variation. Tomatoes are the reason I grow a garden as stores simply don't have the variety or freshness.

I'm also seeing variation in the amount of wine you and Ann are using. Red wine is a very wide description... are we talking port or merlot?

Onions are another possible flavor changer. Red, white, vidalia? I just bought some large yellow onions that are so hot they burn my nose like horseradish!. Onions can add a load of sugar to a soup depending on how they are cooked.

Having enjoyed Ann's recipes and ideas I had to double check her pictures for those chunks of carrot. Moe must have got them all?

I see Ann calls for beef broth. I was wondering if a couple soup bones added to the boil might boost the flavor intensity. Also simmering uncovered for awhile will reduce the soup for a more intense flavor.

I love playing with soup. Seldom tastes bad but always things to tweak and experiment with.

Good luck!

: )
lyra

Ann, I cook them the same way you do and they are so delicious!

My SIL thought that Oxtails would be something that he may not like...until I cooked them for him and now he loves them.

johnliu, If you do as Ann's recipe is you will enjoy and be glad!

"And the meat has shrunk enough that my tails aren't as plump as theirs."

Schweeeeet!

One way to have great tasting oxtail without long cooking time is to be invited by Ann_t to her house. :-)

Half an hours in the pressure cooker will give you very tender ox tail.

dcarch

My grandmother made oxtails when she could find them. They were delicious. I will have to remember to look for them when I shop this week. I think she also used a pressure cooker to make them.

John, get thee a pressure cooker. Arley and I will get you through it. Can you say 'one hour oxtails'?

I know I should get a pressure cooker. I've been trying so hard not to buy any more kitchen tools until I have a new kitchen with room to store said tools. But . . . maybe I'll go shopping this weekend.

'' 'And the meat has shrunk enough that my tails aren't as plump as theirs.'

Schweeeeet!''

Honestly! You naughty-minded folks. Sometimes a cucumber is just a cucumber.

John, not just oxtails in the pressure cooker. Can you say 14 minute steamed artichokes? Osso Buco alla Milanese in under an hour? (I have made it both as a slow braise and as a PC dish. I prefer the PC version.) Corned beef and cabbage in about an hour or so. Absolutely foolproof no-fuss risotto (in about 5 minutes!) which takes no attention--you can be cooking other stuff on the stove while the risotto is cooking.

I've used lots of PC's and here's my take: get a stainless steel PC, one about 8 qt if you have the space to store it.

Best value for the dollar: Fagor makes a great set in their 'Splendid' line which has a 8 qt stockpot, a 4 qt saute pan, and one pressure lid that fits them both, for around $90. (The pans can be used for other non-pressure techniques as well, and the set has a glass non-pressure lid for those uses.) I had this set, and cooked a lot with it, until a relative was borrowing it so often I just let it go. (See the link.)

Best overall brand: Kuhn Rikon. Slightly better fit & finish than Fagor, but I can't tell much difference in performance. Having said that, I have a bad case of equipment lust for the KR 5 qt brasier. I currently have the KR 6 qt stockpot. If I were to do it over again, I'd get the 8 qt instead. You do pay a premium for KR; they're not heavily discounted. But they are of excellent quality.

You DON'T need two pressure settings. (Some PC manufacturers tout this as a marketing point--such as the Fagor Duo line.) I've been using PC's for years, and virtually all of my pressure cooking is done on high.

I never had a PC until I was in my fifties; now I couldn't see having a kitchen without one. Even the big boys use them. I noted on an Iron Chef episode that Mario Batalli used a Kuhn Rikon; I saw on Good Eats that Alton Brown used what appeared to be a Fagor cooker. Read any of Lorna Sass's PC cookbooks, or check out missvickie.com for more info.

Here is a link that might be useful: fagor pressure cookers

John, pressure cooker:

1. Get the biggest you can. You can have smaller pots inside the PC to cook smaller quantities.

2. Look for ones with silicone seals/gaskets. They last much longer.

3. I like st. steel. You can use "Easy-Off" to clean.

4. PC makes perfect rice.

dcarch

John, my granddaughter Makayla says you can't eat those. They're......poopy. LOL.

I have two packages in the freezer from last year's beef, I just found them after removing all the wedding food, so I'm going to have to use those up, thanks for the reminder.

Annie

I made a friend's ''Taiwanese oxtail'' tonight. It is different from the oxtail I've usually made. Here are the basic ingredients for two oxtail: soy sauce (1/3 cup), rice wine (2/3 cup), water (2/3 cup), sugar, 1 tbsp of chopped ginger, a few star anise, a bunch of chopped green onions, a bit of red pepper. The wine is supposed to be ''Michu'' brand cooking wine, but I don't have any. I added some chopped garlic and four beef tendons. He slow cooks his for a few hours in a Le Creuset type Dutch oven, then refrigerates to remove the fat cap. I pressure cooked it for an hour then slow boiled uncovered for another 1/2 hour and defatted the sauce. It is a good variation on oxtail.

Here's a recipe we tried - very good...
Sue

RED-WINE-BRAISED OXTAILS
Epicurious - Gourmet Mag.
Servings: 6
2 750 ml Bottles Dry red wine
12 large oxtail pieces (about 6 pounds total)
1/2 stick unsalted butter (1/4 cup)
5 shallots
5 garlic cloves
2 medium carrots
2 medium leeks (white parts only)
1 medium onion
2 celery ribs
3 fresh thyme sprigs
3 bay leaves
1 bunch parsley stems
4 Cups Chicken broth
Preheat oven to 325ðF.

In a 4- to 6-quart heavy saucepan boil wine until reduced by about half (about 3 1/4 cups). Trim oxtails and pat dry. Season oxtails with salt and pepper.

In a deep heavy ovenproof kettle just large enough to hold oxtails in one layer heat 1 tablespoon butter over moderately high heat until foam subsides and brown half of oxtails on all sides, transferring to a bowl.

Brown remaining oxtails in 1 tablespoon butter in same manner and transfer to bowl.

Coarsely chop shallots, garlic, carrots, leeks, onion, and celery. Add vegetables to kettle and cook in 1 tablespoon butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened.

Arrange oxtails over vegetables and add reduced wine, herbs, and enough broth to just cover oxtails.

Bring liquid to a boil and braise oxtails, covered, in middle of oven 3 to 3 1/2 hours, or until meat is very tender but not falling off the bone.

Transfer oxtails with a slotted spoon to a bowl and keep warm. Pour braising liquid through a fine sieve into a large saucepan and discard solids.