Beef cheeks in red wine is a traditional dish in Spanish cuisine which is easy to make. It is a dish rich in aromas which enhance the characteristic tenderness and sweet flavour of this meat.

Beef cheek is a very tender, juicy cut of meat which, like beef shank, contains sinews. For this reason, it should be slow-cooked and it is advisable to ask your butcher to prepare the meat for stewing by removing some of the tendons.

For this recipe, we shall use dried red peppers and leeks to give extra flavour to the sauce. Using peas in the sauce will also add colour to the dish.

Preparation:

 first clean the beef cheeks, removing the tendons where possible and any excess of fat.

Peel the onions, tomatoes and leeks and cut them julienne style.

Pour 1 cupful of Betis olive oil into a saucepan and fry the beef cheeks. Once they have been sautéed, we add the beef stock mixed with 5 cl (3 ½ tablespoonfuls) of water.

Next, add the chopped onions, tomatoes and leeks to the pan and add the garlic, separated into cloves (still in their skin) and the whole dried peppers. Season the dish with salt and pepper, cover the pan, and leave to cook for 10 minutes, stirring it from time to time.

The next step is to add the red wine, stir gently, and leave the mixture to cook for 3 or 4 hours, depending on the thickness of the beef cheeks.

Once cooked, remove the beef cheeks and blend or mash the sauce with a food mill or a potato masher.

As a garnish we can make mashed potatoes or use boiled peas, pasta or rice.

For decoration we can use the white part of the leeks, cut julienne style and sautéed in Betis olive oil.

When the sauce has been blended, heat it for 5 minutes and meanwhile cut the beef cheeks evenly into pieces.

Finally, to serve the dish, cover the meat with a little of the sauce and add the accompaniment of your choice.

Note: serves 4. Preparation time: 45 minutes. Cooking time: around 4 hours.