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Slow-Braised Oxtail in Nigerian Tomato Sauce

Slow-Braised Oxtail in Nigerian Tomato Sauce is the Nigerian fine dining version of the beloved oxtail preparation — braised for 3 hours until the oxtail meat is completely falling from the bone, then finished in a deeply concentrated Nigerian tomato, pepper and spice sauce of extraordinary richness and complexity. The 3-hour braising creates a sauce of almost supernatural depth — all the collagen, bone marrow and natural gelatin from the oxtail dissolves into the sauce, crea

Slow-Braised Oxtail in Nigerian Tomato Sauce, Nigerian cooking

Ingredients

  • A big pot of oxtail sections (bone-in, cut by the butcher into sections about the size of your fist)
  • Lemon juice and salt for cleaning FOR THE PREMIUM NIGERIAN BRAISE SAUCE:
  • 5 big ripe tomatoes, blended
  • 3 big Tatashe (red bell peppers), blended
  • 4 Atarodo (hot chilli peppers), blended
  • 3 cooking spoons of vegetable oil
  • 3 big handfuls of ground dried crayfish
  • 3 seasoning cubes (Knorr), crushed
  • 1 teaspoon of ground Cameroon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of ground uziza seeds
  • 1 big onion, sliced
  • 2 bay leaves and fresh thyme sprigs
  • Salt to taste
  • 3 glasses of water or stock

Method

  1. 01

    Cleaning and Searing the Oxtail. Clean the oxtail sections thoroughly with lemon juice and salt. Rinse well. Heat 2 cooking spoons of oil in a large, heavy pot over very high heat. Sear the oxtail pieces on all sides until deeply browned — this creates the caramelised surface that gives the premium sauce its extraordinary depth. Remove and set aside.

  2. 02

    Building the Premium Sauce. In the same pot, add the remaining cooking spoon of oil. Add sliced onion and fry 2 minutes. Add blended tomatoes, Tatashe and Atarodo. Fry vigorously for 20 to 25 minutes until deeply cooked and oil floats prominently on top.

  3. 03

    Adding All Seasonings. Add ground crayfish, Cameroon pepper, uziza seeds, seasoning cubes, bay leaves, thyme and salt to the deep pepper base. Stir well and fry 3 more minutes.

  4. 04

    The Long Braise. Return the seared oxtail to the pot. Add 3 glasses of water or stock. The liquid should just cover the oxtail. Bring to a vigorous boil. Reduce to the very lowest possible simmer. Cover tightly and braise for 2.5 to 3 hours — checking every 30 minutes and turning the oxtail pieces. The sauce will reduce and concentrate dramatically as the oxtail fat and collagen dissolve into it.

  5. 05

    Finishing. Once the oxtail is completely falling from the bone, taste the sauce. It should be profoundly rich, glossy, naturally thick from the dissolved collagen and deeply Nigerian in flavour. Adjust all seasonings. Remove the bay leaves.

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