I planned on making beef short ribs in the crock pot and was very disappointed at the grocery store when there were none available and none in the back.  I spotted several packages of beef oxtail and decided I would try out my short rib recipe with the ox tails.  The results were great! Serve this stew over some yellow corn grits for a dinner that will leave everyone’s tummy full.

Here is what you will need:

 

5lbs Beef Oxtail
2 Onions, sliced
2//3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp Spanish smoked paprika
2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tbls chili powder
3 bottles of good quality Root Beer (Diet won’t work here, also,I prefer Virgil’s)
4 tbls peanut oil
2 tbls tomato paste
2 bags frozen black-eyed peas

Start by combining the flour, paprika, salt, pepper and chili powder in a large bowl and combining with a whisk until well mixed. Toss the oxtails in the flour mixture.

Next, heat up 2 tbls of the peanut oil in a large non-stick skillet and add your oxtails. Be careful no to overcrowd your skillet. Turn until the oxtails are browned on all sides (about 6-8 minutes). I was able to get all of the oxtails browned two batches.

Transfer the oxtails to a 7 Quart slow cooker and add the remaining peanut oil to the pan and drippings from the oxtails.

Add the sliced onions to the pan and saute until they begin to become translucent. Add one bottle of root beer to the skillet with the onions with the tomato paste and scrape all of the drippings from the pan.

Add the onions and sauce to the crock pot along with two additional bottles of root beer. Set your crock pot on HIGH and cook for 3 hours. Leave your black-eyed peas on the counter in a bowl to thaw. We will add those after 3 hours.

After the first three hours have passed on HIGH, open the lid and give things a quick toss. Pour in the thawed black-eyed peas and gently stir. Put the lid back on your crock pot and set it on HIGH for an additional three hours.

After the three hours is up you will want to ladle some of the fat that has risen to the top off of the stew.  You will also be ready to taste and adjust the salt and pepper to your preference.

I went out to my herb garden and picked some fresh flat leaf parsley right before serving.  This is optional but offers some pretty greenery to the finished dish!