Sri Lankan Beef Smore Recipe | Cook the Book

Updated August 09, 2018

Sri Lanka is a country with a cuisine with all sorts of European colonial influences. This Sri Lankan Beef Smore from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey plays up it's multi-cultural roots by combining pot roast and red wine vinegar (European for sure) with Sri Lankan spices and coconut milk.

Together, this East meets West pot roast is a mess of big, beautiful flavors—warmth from the spices, a slightly tart element due to the vinegar, and a richness from the beefy cooking juices combined with the coconut milk.

Since this is a dish with such a diverse background as well as one with lots of soppable juices, Jaffrey says that it would be equally at home served over Sri Lankan rice noodles or rice or a pile of fluffy mashed potatoes.

Recipe Details

Sri Lankan Beef Smore Recipe | Cook the Book

Prep 5 mins

Cook 3 hrs

Total 3 hrs 5 mins

Serves 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

One 2 1/2-pound piece of beef (shoulder meat, tied as a roast, or a piece of chuck, or even brisket—any beef chunk suitable for braising)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 teaspoons whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
1/4 teaspoon whole fenugreek seeds
4 tablespoons olive or canola oil
One 2-inch cinnamon stick
1 large onion, finely chopped
One 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cups beef or chicken stock
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup coconut milk from a well shaken can

Directions

Pat the meat dry and sprinkle lightly with salt and lots of black pepper.
Set a small cast-iron or other heavy frying pan over medium heat. When very hot, sprinkle in the coriander, cumin, fennel, and fenugreek seeds. Stir for 30 seconds or so until the spices just start to emit a roasted aroma. Empty onto a piece of paper towel, and, when cooled off a bit, grind the spices in a clean coffee grinder or crush in a mortar.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Pour the oil into an ovenproof casserole-type pan and set over medium high heat. When hot, put in the meat and brown on all sides. Remove to a plate. Add the cinnamon, onions, ginger, and garlic. Stir and cook 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the vinegar, stock, cayenne, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and the beef as well as its accumulated juices. Bring to a boil, stirring the sauce. Cover and place in oven. Cook, basting and turning every 20 minutes or so, about 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until meat is tender. Remove pan from oven. Add the coconut milk, stir, and bring to a simmer before serving.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
534	Calories
40g	Fat
9g	Carbs
38g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories	534
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 40g	51%
Saturated Fat 17g	84%
Cholesterol 121mg	40%
Sodium 715mg	31%
Total Carbohydrate 9g	3%
Dietary Fiber 2g	6%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 38g
Vitamin C 4mg	22%
Calcium 70mg	5%
Iron 5mg	29%
Potassium 683mg	15%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.