National Dishes of the World

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Svíčková (beef in cream sauce)
Photo: Matyáš Havel, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

main dish

Svíčková (beef in cream sauce)

svíčková na smetaně

Braised beef in a velvety sauce of root vegetables and cream, served with dumplings, cranberries and whipped cream.

Eaten in: Czechia

Prep
30 min
Cooking
2 h 30 min
Total
3 h
Servings
6

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About the dish

Svíčková na smetaně is one of the most festive dishes in Czech cooking, served for Sunday lunch and at weddings. Beef sirloin or topside is braised with carrot, parsley root, celeriac and onion, and the vegetables are then blended with cream into a smooth, gently sweet-and-sour sauce. Slices of bread dumplings sit beside the meat, and the plate is topped with a slice of lemon, a dollop of whipped cream and a spoonful of cranberries. The combination can surprise visitors, but for Czechs it tastes of home.

Main ingredients

  • beef
  • carrot
  • parsley root
  • celeriac
  • cream
  • bread dumplings
  • cranberries

More: Wikipedia (en)

Recipe

Svíčková (beef in cream sauce)

https://foodmap.ominuvo.com/dish/svickova

Ingredients

6 servings

6 servings

Method

  1. Make small cuts in the meat and lard it with strips of bacon, then season with salt and pepper.

  2. Dice the vegetables and onion and fry them in the butter in a roasting dish until lightly golden.

  3. Brown the meat well on all sides and lay it on the vegetables. Add the spices, vinegar, sugar and stock.

  4. Cover and braise in an oven preheated to 160°C for about 2–2.5 hours until tender, topping up with stock if needed.

  5. Lift out the meat, remove the bay leaves and allspice, and blend the vegetables with the juices until smooth. Stir in the cream, heat through and balance with salt, sugar and vinegar.

  6. Slice the meat and serve with the sauce and dumplings, topped with a slice of lemon, whipped cream and cranberries.

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