Svíčková
The Czech Sunday dish: beef sirloin braised with root vegetables (carrot, celeriac, parsnip) in a creamy sauce, served with knedlíky (bread dumplings), cranberries and whipped cream.
Ingredients
- 1 kg beef sirloin or topside
- 80 g bacon
- 2 carrots, 1 parsnip and 1/4 celeriac
- 1 onion
- Peppercorns, allspice, bay leaf and thyme
- 2 tablespoons of vinegar and 1 of sugar
- 250 ml cream
- 1 tablespoon of mustard
- Knedlíky, cranberry jam, whipped cream and lemon to serve
How to make it at home
- Lard the meat with strips of bacon, season and brown it in a casserole.
- Add the vegetables in chunks and the onion, sauté, then add the spices, vinegar, sugar and water to halfway up.
- Cover and bake at 170 °C for about 2 hours, until tender.
- Take out the meat, blend the vegetables with the juices, add the cream and mustard and simmer until thick. Strain the sauce.
- Serve the meat sliced with the sauce, knedlíky, a slice of lemon, whipped cream and cranberries.
The trick: Knedlíky are sold ready-made in Eastern European shops; otherwise you can make something similar with day-old bread and egg.