Hachee with red cabbage and mashed potato

Description

Hachee is a traditional stew made with diced meat, fish, or poultry, and vegetables. The version commonly eaten in the Netherlands, based on beef, onions, flour, broth, and something acidic (usually vinegar and wine), is considered part of typical Dutch cuisine.
The rather thick gravy is flavored with ingredients like peppercorns, cloves, and bay leaves. Hachee is often served with red cabbage, apple or applesauce, and potatoes, or sometimes with rice or ""hutspot"" (a traditional Dutch mashed vegetable dish).
The word ""hachee"" comes from the French word for chopping: ""hacher."" Variations of hachee already appear in descriptions of medieval buffets, although preparation methods and specific ingredients are rarely mentioned.
The dish likely originated from the reuse of leftover roasted meat, combined with whatever vegetables were available at the time. Acidic or sweet-and-sour liquids, such as wine or vinegar, were added to help tenderize the meat.

Recipe

Hachee:


Instructions:
• Take the meat out of the fridge an hour beforehand and pat it dry. Season the meat with freshly ground salt and pepper.
• Melt a knob of butter in a large casserole and brown the meat.
• Remove the meat from the pan and melt another knob of butter in the same pan.
• Sauté the onions and garlic over low heat until soft, which takes about 10 minutes.
• Return the meat to the pan and stir in the flour. Cook for another minute.
• Pour the beer, stock, and red wine vinegar into the pan. The meat should be just covered. If necessary, add a little more stock.
• Season to taste with freshly ground salt and pepper, and stir everything well.
• Stick the cloves into the bay leaves and place them in the pan. Cover the pan and let the meat simmer on the lowest heat for about 3 hours.
• The meat is ready when it's super tender and easily falls apart. If it's not tender after 3 hours, let it simmer longer.
• Before serving, remove the bay leaves and cloves.
• If the sauce is too thin, you can thicken it with a little cornstarch.


Red cabbage:

Instructions:
• Put the finely chopped red cabbage in a pan with the water (2 tsp salt per 400 ml water), cloves, bay leaves, juniper berries, cinnamon, sugar, and vinegar.
• Stir everything together well and bring to a boil. Let it simmer gently for about an hour, stirring occasionally.
• After an hour, stir in the diced apples and let them stew for another 5 minutes.
• Stir in a tablespoon of butter and season with pepper and salt.




Mashed potatoes:


Instructions:
• Boil the potatoes in salted water for 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes.
• In a small pan, bring the milk to a boil, then remove from the heat, cover, and set aside.
• Mash the hot potatoes with a potato ricer or a masher in a pan.
• Whisk the warm milk and butter into the mashed potatoes with a whisk. Keep whisking over low heat until you have a light and fluffy mashed potato.
• Season the mash with salt, pepper, and nutmeg (optional).