BEEF FLANK AND VEGETABLE BOMBETTA [STUFFED MEAT ROLL]

A pick-up-and-go savoury phyllo pastry topped with pulled braised brisket cooked in a rich balsamic onion sauce, cottage cheese, and an egg, baked in the oven and finished off with a crunchy chili drizzle.


Click here for the downloadable recipe.



INGREDIENTS

Beef

500 g Flank / bavette steak, very thinly sliced strips or thinly sliced beef
approximately 20 cm in length by 5-6 cm wide [2 strips per bombetta]

1 teaspoon Salt

½ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons Olive oil

2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon Sugar

2 tablespoons Beef stock

Stuffing

16 medium sized Brown mushrooms

1 tablespoon Butter

1 cup Spinach, blanched and finely shredded

125 g Feta, crumbled

4 tablespoons Peppadews, chopped

½ teaspoon Salt

½ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper


METHOD

Preparing the stuffing for the bombetta:

  1. Rinse the mushrooms, remove the stems and keep aside. Place the mushrooms in a pan with the butter and cover with a lid. Place over medium heat and leave the mushrooms to ‘steam’ in the pan for 2-3 minutes.

  2. Chop the mushroom stems and mix with the spinach, feta and peppadews. Season with the salt and pepper.

  3. Divide the stuffing mixture between the mushrooms and fill each mushroom cavity.

Preparing the bombetta:

  1. Use two strips of beef per bombetta. If the meat is not thin enough use a meat mallet and pound the meat so that it is ½ cm thick. Place the two strips of beef at right angles over one another to form a cross so that you have four ends.

  2. Season the strips and place 1 stuffed mushroom in the center where the two strips of meat are crossing, in other words at the thickest part of the meat cross. Place a second stuffed mushroom on top of the first mushroom to encase the spinach filling.

  3. Fold the meat over the mushrooms to encase them from all sides, wrapping the meat around the mushrooms to create a squarish stuffed meat roll. Tie with butchers’ twine to keep the bombetta together and prevent the meat from coming undone.

  4. Repeat for all eight rolls and place on a platter. Season the bombetta on the outside and leave to sit aside while heating the pan.

  5. Make a glazing mixture with the balsamic vinegar, sugar and beef stock.

  6. Place a pan or grill pan over medium high heat. Add the oil and place the bombetta in the pan (end of the meat strip is on the bottom) and cook for 2-3 minutes. Cook while turning the bombetta and brown it on all sides, about 7-8 minutes.

  7. Reduce the heat to low and add the glazing mixture to the pan. Coat the bombetta with the glaze. Remove from the pan and place on a warm platter, leave to rest 5-10 minutes. Slice each bombetta in half and serve with shoestring fries and a mixed lettuce salad.