Pressure Cooker Beef & Beans

This is a variation of our Morcillo recipe. Any of the tougher cuts of beef will work: shank, cheeks (as shown here), chuck or brisket. Here, it's cooked together with beans (chickpeas will work as well) and the result is delicious. There's an added benefit: the leftover cooking liquid is a rich & tasty stock well worth saving.

Ingredients

• 1 piece of beef (about 1 kilo/2 pounds) - cut in 4" chunks. (shank, chuck or brisket)
• 250 grams dry beans (1/2 pound white, red, navy, other) - cover with water & soak overnight
• 1 large onion (roughly chopped)
• 2 carrots (peeled & sliced in rounds)
• 6 button mushrooms - washed, roughly chopped
• 1 small potato, peeled
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 bay leaf, 4 whole peppercorns, salt & ground pepper

Preparation

• Salt & pepper the meat (dusting with flour is optional)
• Brown the meat on all sides in olive oil, set aside.
• Lightly sautee onions, carrot, garlic & mushrooms (3 minutes).
• Add back the meat plus bay leaf, peppercorns & 1/2 tsp salt.
• Drain the beans and add to the pot.
• Add enough water (or stock) to cover by about 5 cm/2".
• Close the pressure cooker, when the pressure is up, cook for about 35 minutes.
• When the pressure bleeds off, strain and save the stock: remove the beans, meat & bay leaf, puree the veg with a cup of stock to make a nice thick sauce. Check salt/adjust. Make sure the beans are tender.
• Serve the meat on a bed of beans with a healthy spoonful of the sauce, and extra beans & sauce available for those who will (probably) want more. Enjoy!

Note:
1. If you like, use stock instead of water. Reduce salt if using stock.
2. Cooking time in a normal stew pot takes twice as long, but works a treat.
3. Optional spices: cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, star anise...
4. The stock left over is delicious: Full of flavor, great for soup.
5. Cooking time may vary. If the beans are not tender, return beans to the pot with some stock and cook for another 5 minutes. This can also be prepared with a long slow cook as in our puchero recipe.

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