Sluttishly Savoury: Cow in Coke

This was inspired by Delia's Beef in Beer, but as I'm pregnant and there's no beer in the house I decided to make a teetotal version. And so Cow in Coke was born.

It might sound a bit funny, but I assure you it's delicious. If you fancy trying more zany soft drink based recipes, why not have a go at Nigella's infamous Ham in Cola , some Sprite cupcakes or Dr Pepper  BBQ Sauce?


Cow in Coke (serves 4)
You'll need:

• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 500g braising steak, chopped into chunks
• 1 onion, chopped into chunks
• Some root vegetables - I used 4 carrots, 1 parsnip and 1 turnip, peeled and chopped into chunks
• 1tbsp cornflour
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 star anise
• 500ml coca cola
• 500ml beef stock

Make it!

• Preheat the oven to 150c / Gas
• Heat the oil in a casserole dish or large ovenproof saucepan and brown the meat well on all sides. Remove the meat to a bowl.
• Add the onion to the pan and cook until it's softened and going brown round the edges.
• Add the root vegetables and cook for a couple of minutes to get some nice brown caramelised bits on the edges.
• Add the meat back to the pan, then stir in the cornflour so it coats everything.
• Add the bay leaf, star anise, stock and coca cola and bring to the boil.
• Put the lid on and place the pan in the oven. Cook for 2 hours, until the meat and veg are lovely and tender.
• Season with plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with heaps of buttery mash.