Meat mains
Meat n veg loaf with red wine and porcini sauce
A very good way of stretching out a bit of mince, this American favourite is economical, rich and deeply satisfying. Serve a hot slice on buttery mash or a jacket potato, or at room temperature with crisp salad leaves and crusty bread.
Ingredients
- 15g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in 300ml hot water
- 75g unsalted butter
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 bunch spring onions, trimmed and chopped
- 2 stalks celery, finely sliced
- 1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed with a little salt
- 2 large mushrooms, finely diced
- 500g minced beef
- 500g sausage meat (easiest thing to do is to squeeze the meat out of sausage skins, or you could make your own using pork mince, breadcrumbs and water)
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp grated nutmeg
- 5 tbsp piri-piri sauce
- 5 tbsp tomato ketchup
- 5 tbsp milk
- 5 tbsp double cream
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 75g fresh breadcrumbs
- For the sauce:
- 50g unsalted butter
- 4 shallots, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1 sprig thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- liquid from soaked porcini
- 175 ml red wine
- 175 ml beef stock
Method
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Step 1
Preheat oven to 180°C/Gas 4, remove the porcini from the hot water, setting it aside for the sauce and rinse the mushrooms under cold water, then squeeze to dry and chop finely.
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Step 2
Strain the soaking water through muslin to remove any grit. In a large frying pan, melt the butter and gently fry the onions, celery, carrot, red pepper, garlic, mushrooms and chopped porcini over a medium heat until soft (but not brown), and the liquid from the chopped mushrooms has been cooked away.
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Step 3
Transfer the contents of the pan to a large bowl and allow to cool a little before folding in the remaining ingredients – mixing well to combine. Have a taste test by frying a small amount of the mixture in a dash of oil and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
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Step 4
Next, spoon the mixture into a greased loaf tin. Set the tin in a larger pan and pour enough water to reach halfway up the sides of the loaf tin. Transfer to the oven for about 1 hour or until the internal temperature of the meat loaf comes to 65°C. Spoon away any fat that has risen up to the top and discard.
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Step 5
Sit a weight on top of the loaf after removing it from the oven (a tin of beans on a small board will do) and let it stand in a warm place for 20 minutes or so before turning it out of the tin to be sliced.
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Step 6
While the meatloaf rests, make the sauce by warming half the butter with the shallots, garlic, thyme and bay leaf. Cook for a few minutes until the shallots are soft but not colouring. Add the black pepper, the porcini stock and red wine and simmer over a high heat until the liquid has reduced by half. Now add the beef stock and reduce again by about a third. Stir in the remaining butter.
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Step 7
Season to taste and remove the bay leaf and thyme sprig before serving.
