Beef roulades

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 6 beef roulades (180g each)
• 12 slice(s) of bacon, mildly smoked, streaky (thin) or pancetta
• 2 m.-sized onion(s)
• 1 large bell pepper(s), red
• 1 piece(s) celeriac (about 70 – 80g ready to cook)
• 1 large carrot(s)
• 2 large garlic cloves
• 2 small chili peppers, dried red (not very hot)
• 2 tomatoes, fully ripe
• 2 tbsp tomato paste (heaped)
• 3 tbsp lard
• 2 tbsp rosemary
• 2 tbsp thyme
• 2 tbsp sage
• some mustard, hotter for spreading
• some pepper, freshly ground black
• some salt
• 400 ml red wine, strong dry
• 500 ml beef stock
• 1 bunch of herbs (rosemary, sage and thyme)
• e.g. mustard, for final seasoning

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours; Total time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes

Beef roulades according to German-Italian culinary tradition

Peel and halve the onion. Cut fine strips from half an onion, dice the other onions. Wash and trim the bell peppers, cut one half into fine strips, and dice the other half. Peel and chop the garlic, wash the tomatoes, deseed them, and cut into small pieces. Peel the carrots, quarter them, and cut into thin pieces. Clean and dice the celery. Wash and dry the herbs, remove the stems, deseed the chilies, and finely chop both. Pat the roulades dry and flatten again, spread with mustard, season with pepper, and sprinkle with the herbs. Distribute some of the onion and bell pepper strips on top, place the pancetta on top, roll up tightly, and tie with kitchen twine. Heat 2 tablespoons of lard in a roasting pan and brown the roulades well on all sides. Remove, season with salt and pepper, and keep warm. Heat another tablespoon of lard and brown the diced onion and root vegetables in it. Add the diced bell peppers and tomato paste, roast briefly, add the chopped tomatoes, garlic and chilies, fry briefly and deglaze with 200ml red wine, reduce slightly and add 200ml stock. Add the roulades back in, add the herb bouquet, pour in 100ml wine and 100ml stock and braise in the oven with the lid closed for 60 minutes at 150°C. Pour in the remaining wine and stock and braise uncovered for a further 30-40 minutes, basting with the meat juices occasionally. Remove the roasting pan from the oven, place the roulades on a platter and place in the switched off oven. Remove the herb bouquet, pass the sauce through a sieve and bring to the boil. Season to taste with mustard, pepper and salt, thickening slightly if necessary. Arrange the roulades on plates, drizzle with a little sauce and serve immediately. South Tyrolean cheese dumplings or tagliatelle are good side dishes, while potatoes or spaetzle also go very well. Leaf spinach or salad are better suited to this dish than the classic German vegetable side dishes.