Jamaican Oxtail Stew

About This Recipe

Jamaican oxtail stew is arguably the island's greatest culinary achievement — oxtail braised for hours until the collagen-rich meat becomes gelatinous and falls from the bone, surrounded by tender butter beans in a rich, dark, spiced gravy. The 'browning' sauce gives it its characteristic deep mahogany color. Served over rice and peas, it's the dish that Jamaicans worldwide say they miss most.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 1.5 kgoxtail, cut into pieces
• 1 canbutter beans (lima beans), drained
• 1 mediumonion, chopped
• 4 clovesgarlic, minced
• 1 piecescotch bonnet pepper, whole
• 3 stalksscallions
• 2 tbspbrowning sauce (or 1 tbsp soy sauce + 1 tbsp molasses)
• 2 tbspsoy sauce
• 1 tspallspice
• 1 tspblack pepper
• 1 tspsalt
• 2 sprigsfresh thyme
• 2 cupswater or beef stock
• 2 tbspvegetable oil

Instructions

1. 1

   Season and brown

   Season oxtail with browning, soy sauce, allspice, salt, and pepper. Marinate 1 hour. Brown in batches in hot oil. Remove and set aside.

2. 2

   Build the braise

   Sauté onion and garlic in the same pot. Add browned oxtail back. Add water, scallions, thyme, and whole scotch bonnet.

3. 3

   Slow braise

   Bring to a boil, then reduce to a very low simmer. Cover and cook for 2.5–3 hours until oxtail is very tender and nearly falling from the bone.

4. 4

   Add butter beans

   Add drained butter beans. Simmer 30 more minutes until beans are soft and the sauce has thickened into a rich gravy.

5. 5

   Serve

   Remove whole scotch bonnet. Serve over rice and peas with festival or hard dough bread.

Variations

• •

  Add carrots and potatoes to the braise

• •

  Make with goat instead of oxtail

• •

  Finish with a splash of Grace browning for deeper color

Storage

Refrigerate up to 5 days. The flavor improves significantly overnight. Freezes excellently.

Frequently Asked Questions