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Limburgs zuurvlees
Sweet-sour beef stew
Zoervleisj: Limburg sweet-sour beef stew with apple syrup and gingerbread
Zoervleisj, sour meat, is the signature dish of Limburg in the south of the Netherlands, eaten with fries and apple sauce in every café in Maastricht and Heerlen: beef marinated overnight in vinegar with bay and cloves, then braised slowly with onions and thickened with Limburg apple-pear syrup (stroop) and slices of spiced gingerbread until dark, glossy and sweet-sour. Traditionally horse meat was used; beef is the usual choice today. A common mistake is skipping the marinade, which leaves the meat bland. Chef's tip: marinate in the fridge for at least 12 hours and use the marinade in the braise.
- Total time
- 200 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 2 ¼ lb beef chuckcut into 4 cm pieces
- ¾ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 ¼ cups water
For the stew
- 1 ⅜ oz butter
- 3 onionssliced
- 3 slices spiced gingerbread (ontbijtkoek)crumbled
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
To serve
- 1 ¾ lb chips
- 7 oz apple sauce
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put 2 ¼ lb beef chuck in a bowl with ¾ cup red wine vinegar, 1 ¼ cups water, 3 bay leaves, 4 whole cloves and 6 juniper berries. Cover and refrigerate for 12–24 hours. Common mistake: skipping this; bland meat.
Step 2: Lift out the beef and pat dry; keep the marinade. Brown the beef in 1 ⅜ oz butter in batches over a high heat, 4 minutes each.
12 minStep 3: Add 3 onions and fry 8 minutes, until golden.
8 minStep 4: Strain in the marinade, add 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper, cover and simmer gently for 2½ hours, until tender.
150 minStep 5: Stir in 3 tbsp apple-pear syrup (Limburgse stroop), 3 slices spiced gingerbread (ontbijtkoek) and 1 tbsp brown sugar and simmer 15 minutes, until thick, dark and glossy.
15 minStep 6: Serve with 1 ¾ lb chips and 7 oz apple sauce.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 560 kcal
- Protein
- 40 g
- Carbs
- 40 g
- Fat
- 24 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does limburgs zuurvlees take?
- About 200 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 180 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of red wine vinegar?
- Sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of bay leaves?
- Leave it out, or a pinch of dried thyme (it's a background flavour).
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