Tomato sauce

Sweet-and-sour Czech tomato sauce (rajská) with tender beef, served over bread dumplings — a nostalgic comfort plate for four.

Ingredients

• tomato paste200 g
• beef500 g
• onion1 pcs
• sugar1 tbsp
• bread dumpling8 slices
• broth400 ml

Method

1. Prep your ingredients. Peel and finely dice the onion. Have your tomato paste, sugar, and broth measured and ready before you turn on the heat — this sauce comes together quickly once you start.
2. Sear the beef. Heat a little oil in a heavy-based pan over high heat and sear the beef on all sides until deeply browned, about 2–3 minutes per side. This builds the flavour base for your broth.
3. Soften the onion. Remove the beef and reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion to the same pan and cook for 4–5 minutes, stirring often, until soft and just starting to turn golden.
4. Build the sauce. Stir in the tomato paste and cook it off for 1–2 minutes so it darkens slightly and smells rich. Pour in the broth, add the sugar, and stir everything together, scraping up any browned bits from the pan.
5. Simmer the beef. Return the beef to the pan, bring to a gentle simmer, then cover and cook for 25–30 minutes until the beef is genuinely tender when pierced with a skewer. Turn it once halfway through.
6. Rest and slice the beef. Lift the beef out and rest it on a board for 5 minutes, then slice it thickly across the grain. Meanwhile, taste the sauce and adjust the sweet-sour balance with a pinch more sugar or a little salt and pepper.
7. Warm the dumplings. Arrange two slices of bread dumpling per person on warmed plates — steam or microwave them briefly if they need freshening up.
8. Plate and serve. Lay the beef slices over the dumplings and ladle the smooth tomato sauce generously over the top, making sure everything is well coated and steaming hot.

Safety & hygiene Important

• Check beef is cooked through. The beef should reach an internal temperature of at least 70 °C and feel completely tender with no resistance when probed — undercooked braised beef can be tough and unsafe to eat.