Handle them just like you would good stewing beef. Oxtail stew...Mmmmmmmmm. Braised oxtails....Mmmmmmmm. I made Burgundy beef once, subbing oxtails for the stew beef, and it was luscious.

Here is a recipe from Ann T. It is WONDERFUL!!!

Oxtails
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3 pounds oxtails (I Prefer the smaller ones)
1 onion chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled,
Salt
Pepper
Fresh rosemary minced
1 or 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
1 cup red wine
Beef broth (enough to cover meat)

Brown oxtails in small batches so that they brown and don't steam.

Remove from pan and add chopped onions, carrots and celery. Brown vegetables and add the head of peeled garlic cloves,

Add red wine, beef broth, chopped fresh rosemary, salt, pepper and a squirt of tomato paste. Cover and simmer until the oxtails are tender. Remove oxtails. Skim off fat and then whisk using a stick blender to puree the liquid with the vegetables to thicken the sauce.

They do great in a pressure cooker, if you happen to have one. Otherwise treat them as any tough but flavorful piece of beef: brown them then braise gently for a few hours until they're fall-off-the-bone tender. This is a good application for a dutch oven; after browning and adding liquid and aromatic vegetables, cover and cook in a slow oven for a few hours. Foolproof, and it'll make the kitchen smell great.

BTW, they're excellent cooked one day, then chilled in the fridge and reheated; it allows you to remove the solidified fat from the dish.

As Spencer Tracy said about Katherine Hepburn (I think it was in 'Pat & Mike') "There's not much meat there, but what's there is cherce."

Good stuff ox tails are... very flavorful... dreamhouses recipe sounds pretty close to what I do with them except I dredge mine is a bit of flour before browning...(just a bit,not too much) ..makes a thicker gravy, great for sopping up with some nice home made french or italian artisan bread... yummmm.

Carolyn

Pressure cooker is good.

Many ways to enjoy ox tails.

dcarch

Alternate way to cook oxtails. A bit more piquant than the traditional Western preparation. My friend, who showed me this approach, calls it ''Taiwanese style'' oxtail. The same preparation works for beef ribs and other slow-cooked beef cuts.

Ingredients:

3 pounds beef, oxtails
3 fluid ounce soy sauce
6 fluid ounce rice wine
6 fluid ounce water
(you want enough liquid to cover the meat in the pot, may not be exactly these quantities depending on your pot, but should not be any less)
1 tbsp ginger
1 cup green onions
2 star anise
1/2 fluid ounce vegetable oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

chop ginger, cut green onions into 2" lengths
use large sauce pot or dutch oven with tight-fitting lid
heat oil and brown oxtails over high heat, working in batches
place oxtails and remaining ingredients in pot
cover pot and reduce heat to simmer, or place covered pot in 350F oven
cook for 4 hours
place pot on burner
remove oxtails and set aside
remove green onions, ginger, and other solids (strain liquid)
defat liquid with spoon or fat separator
bring liquid to boil, and boil for 1/2 hour to reduce
return oxtails to pot to reheat and coat in sauce
if wished, garnish w/ some fresh green onions, cut in 2'' lengths and split down the middle

note:
star anise and red pepper are optional
beef stock may be used in place of water
sake can substitute for rice wine
light soy sauce may be used
as faster alternative to 4 hours slow cooking, may cook in pressure cooker at high pressure for 1 hour

if a thicker sauce is desired, whisk in some cornstarch while boiling down the liquid, just 1/2 tbsp to start with.