Beef Bouillon Soup from Oxtails

Many recipes call for beef stock (e.g. French onion soup), but good beef stock is hard to come by, with beef prices these days, expensive to make.

Beef oxtails make a wonderful stock and sometimes you can get them (try Costco) at a reasonable price. If you’ve never cooked oxtails before, they do indeed come from the tail of a steer, and they make the most divinely flavorful stew.

Their bones are also filled with marrow, perfect for making bouillon. It makes a delicious soup all on its own. You can also use it as a base for French onion soup or other beef-based soups.

We found this recipe in an old issue of Gourmet magazine. It accompanied an oxtail pâté which you make from the strained oxtails from this recipe.

Beef Bouillon Soup from Oxtails Recipe

Ingredients

• 3-4 lbs oxtails, patted dry
• Salt and pepper
• 2 onions, peeled and quartered
• 2 carrots, cut into 1-inch sections
• Zest of one orange, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 4 quarts water
• 1/3 cup fresh cranberries (if in season, otherwise use a quarter of a lemon)
• 10 oz mushrooms, chopped coarse
• 3 ribs celery, cut into 1-inch sections
• 4 sprigs of thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cloves
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

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