This Czech Republic dish of beef sirloin with vegetable cream sauce served with bread dumplings and cranberry is reminiscent of an American Thanksgiving turkey dinner, even though it is made with beef. The vegetable cream sauce is fantastic and could easily be turned into a wonderful soup on its own. It is a hearty meal that I will include in my favorites. This is a very popular meal in the Czech Republic and it is clear why, it is simply delicious!
Czech Republic Svíčková na smetaně (Beef sirloin with vegetable cream sauce)
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 3-4 lbs. of the finest beef sirloin a tenderloin would work great
- ¼ lb. of smoked pork lard or bacon chopped into wedges if you can’t find lard
- 2 lbs. of soup bones with marrow
- 3 large carrots peeled and chopped
- 3 celery ribs chopped
- 2 parsnips peeled and chopped
- 2 white onions diced
- For the Gravy:
- 10 whole all spice
- 10 peppercorns
- 4 bay leaves
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
- 100 ml or about 1/3 cup white wine-vinegar
- 100 ml or about 1/3 cup white wine
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 6 Tablespoons Whole cranberry sauce 4 for gravy- 2 for garnish on a lemon wedge
- 7 oz. heavy cream
- 5 Tablespoons flour
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Insert the smoked lard into the beef sirloin by making slits into the beef. Use the same method if using bacon wedges.
- Put the meat and the soup bones on a roasting pan, put the cut up vegetables onto a separate cookie sheet and sprinkle with some oil. Put the vegetables one rack below the meat into the oven.
- Roast in the oven for 45 minutes
- minutes before the meat and vegetables are roasted, start the gravy
- Put a very large pot with 3 liters or 12 cups of water on the stove to boil
- Put the spices, all spice, peppercorns, bay leaves, and thyme) into a spice bag for easy removal and add to the water.
- Add the wine vinegar – Dijon mustard- white wine and 4 tablespoons of cranberry sauce.
- Remove the meat, bones and vegetables from the oven and transfer all of them after seasoning with some salt to the large pot.
- Cook for 2 hours. (During the last 30 minutes you could make the batter for the bread dumplings, see recipe for Houskvý Knedlík )
- Remove the meat bones and spice bag out of the pot, cover the meat with foil to rest. The soup bones have served their purpose and if you have a pooch, they will love you for them.
- Remove the vegetables and mash through a strainer.
- You will need only 1 liter or approx. 4 cups of the stock for the gravy. Save the rest as wonderful beef stock for another recipe.
- In your pot you should have 4 cups of the stock and add the mashed vegetables, If you want you could use an emersion blender to puree.
- Add the cream and 2 Tablespoons of flour. Keep adding flour until desired thickness is achieved.
- Keep gravy warm while you make the bread dumplings. See recipe Houskvý Knedlík
- Slice the meat and serve with lots of the gravy and bread dumplings. It is customary to garnish the plate with the cranberry sauce on top of a slice lemon. You just may want to lick the plate!
