Let's make some red wine jus; we don't need to be privileged to taste something extraordinary.

Some preliminary words

When you cook, do mean it! Immerse yourself in the activity. It can transform you. If not. At least try.

In this article, I wanted to present you with one of my favourite things I enjoy in life - preparing an enhancement for an amazing meal. The recipe of this sauce goes well, either with poultry or beef. I picked some of the basics making it when I working as a chef; I made some minor changes over the years to make it as simple as possible. I hope to add a few tweaks in the future; still, when you want to lift your mood, go for this recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingridients

The great thing about this recipie it is can be quite simple. The ingriedients are listed below:

• About 3/4 of a bottle of red wine - we will prefer French Merlot, Bordoux or Malbec;
• About 1/2 litre of good quality stock (I will add another post on how to make good stock). Don't use cubes; I went out there but I can't find anything that would substitute for good slow cooked stock;
• Optional: 2 medium glasses of port;
• 2 stalks of Rosemary;
• 3 gloves of garlick;
• 2 shallots;
• A knob of butter;
• A spoon of Red Currant Jam: (optional);

Visualising the ingredients

I am a visual creature, this is how I prime myself to cook:

Some say: "Follow the process"

The recipie is farily approachable and it involves just a few simple steps:

• slice a couple of shallots lenghwise;
• crush about 2-3 garlic cloves with the back of the knife ;
• pour the wine into a pan; add shallots, garlic and rosemary;
• simmer all on medium heat and reduce the liquid to half of its volume;
• remove rosemary, garlic and shallots from the liquid;
• pour in beef stock then reduce heat and simmer the liquid until it reduces its volume by half;
• add a spoon or two of redcurrant jam - try a little bit first, add more depending on your preference. Simmer the liquid for a couple of minutes after adding redcurrant jam;
• finally add a knob of butter to the liquid. The butter will make the jus gain a velvety finish. Yummy!
• Now you can pour your jus over your favorite roast chicken, beef or steak part.

I made a visualal summary that may help you remember the above the process:

Once you master making this sauce, you can pour it over your favorite meat instead of gravy. You can freeze leftover liquid if you want..

At some point I wil try to teach you how to make a tasty steak without breaking the bank. To be frank, I like my steak as medium rare, every quarter of the year:

As an example, I enjoy this jus recipie with baby carrots, roasted potatoes and sugar snaps:

I hope to put this recipie in the future. Still, enjoy the sauce with your creative input!