-
1
Brown the beef and drain.
-
2
If you are using whole spices/herbs, which I prefer for this, add all to a mortar and pestle them into a fine powder. If you are using ground spices/herbs, just mix them all together in a bowl and set aside. Note that you'll need more than the measurements listed above if you're using whole spices like allspice and cloves. In the end you want the ground quantities to roughly match the amounts listed in the ingredient list. None of these measurements is super critical. After you make this, you'll likely tweak the spices to suit your taste anyway.
-
3
In the beef browning pan, make a roux by cooking the flour with either 1 tablespoon of the beef fat or butter. I've done it both ways, couldn't tell the difference.
-
4
Add the roux to a 4qt saucepan over medium low heat. Dump the beef/water mix in there. Add the spice mixture, vinegar, and tomato paste and whisk until it's all blended.
-
5
Bring to a good simmer, stirring often. Then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer uncovered for about an hour, stirring occasionally to keep the meat from settling to the bottom of the pan and burning. It will reduce and thicken and become delicious over that hour. Nothing wrong with two hours either!
-
6
Finally, grind it up a bit right in the saucepan using a stick/immersion blender. You don't want to go too far with this and make a smooth milkshake, we're just trying to break down some of the big chunks so that the result is like finely ground beef that restaurants can get but we can't find so easily.
