Chefs Vinny Dotolo & Jon Shook

Poutine with Oxtail Gravy and Cheddar
Adapted by StarChefs.com
February 2010

Yield: 8 to 10 Servings

INGREDIENTS

Veal Stock:
50 pounds veal bones
5 Spanish onions
5 carrots
2 celery root bulbs
Herb sachet with thyme, peppercorn, garlic, bay leaf, parsley stems
¼ cup tomato paste

Oxtail:
20 pounds center-cut oxtail
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup neutral oil
1 pint red wine
2 carrots
2 onions
2 celery root bulbs
5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme

Bordelaise:
1 tablespoon neutral oil
2 carrots, chopped
2 onions, chopped
2 celery root bulbs, chopped
1 pint red wine
5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme
1 gallon veal stock

Foie Sauce:
10 ounces foie gras
3 ounces shallots, sliced
1½ tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
4 ounces red wine
¼ cup cream
12 ounces butter
Salt

Fries:
3 pounds Kennebec potatoes, julienne

To Assemble and Serve:
Extra sharp Cheddar, grated

METHOD

For the Veal Stock:
Put the veal bones in large stock pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Discard the water and wash the bones with running water. Return the bones to a clean stock pot and add the onions, carrots, celery root, herb sachet, and tomato paste. Fill the pot with water and cook over medium heat, stirring intermittently, for 3 days (not overnight), adding more water as needed. Strain.

For the Oxtail:
Preheat the oven to 275°F. Season the oxtail. Sear the oxtail in the oil in a sauté pan until golden brown on all sides. After searing all the pieces, pour out the oil and deglaze the pan with red wine. Remove the seared oxtail pieces to a hotel pan and add the vegetables and deglazing liquid. Pour in room temperature water to cover the oxtail about halfway. Cover the pan and cook in the preheated oven for 3 hours or until the oxtail is fork-tender. Cool the oxtail to room temperature and pick the meat from the bones. Reserve. Discard the cooking liquid.

For the Bordelaise:
Sweat all the vegetables in the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Deglaze with red wine and reduce by half. Add the thyme and veal stock and reduce the mixture again by two-thirds. 

For the Foie Sauce:
Sear the foie gras with the shallots and thyme in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Deglaze with red wine and stir in 2 quarts of bordelaise. Reduce the mixture by half over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. When the mixture is reduced, add the cream and whisk in the butter. Season to taste.

For the Fries:
Wash all the starch off the potato slices. Blanch in a preheated deep-fryer at 275°F for 5½ minutes. Drain the fries on a paper towel-lined sheet tray to cool slightly.   

To Assemble and Serve:
Preheat a deep-fryer to 350°F. Combine the oxtail meat and foie sauce in a sauce pan over medium heat and reduce until thick, or the consistency of gravy. While it reduces, fry the blanched fries until golden brown. Sprinkle a bed of Cheddar on the serving plate and top with a bunch of fries. Sprinkle with another generous layer of Cheddar and then spoon the hot oxtail gravy over the top.

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