Chef Dimitra
Bourdeto Kerkyra (Μπουρδέτο Κέρκυρας)
Corfu's bourdeto is a red, pepper-hot fish braise, traditionally made with scorpionfish, potatoes, tomato, and enough heat to announce the Ionian table.
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Moschari Lemonato Sterea Elladas (Μοσχάρι Λεμονάτο)
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Sterea Ellada's lemon beef is pale, glossy, and sharp with lemon, a one-pot braise where good olive oil, patient simmering, and no tomato do the work.
Soups & Stews
Greek
Comfort Food
Weeknight
One Pot
20 min
Active Time
2 hr 10 min cook•2 hr 30 min total
Yield6 servings
Moschari Lemonato belongs to the mainland table, especially Sterea Ellada, where a pot of beef can be bright and pale instead of red with tomato. The sauce is lemon, olive oil, onion, wine, and the beef's own juices, reduced until it clings lightly to each piece. It should taste clean, not sour, and rich without heaviness.
The one rule is the lemon. Add it near the end, after the beef has softened and the sauce has already found its body. Lemon boiled for two hours turns flat and a little bitter. Lemon added late stays alive, lifts the meat, and keeps the dish itself.
Serve it with fried potatoes, rice, or hilopites, the small Greek egg noodles that catch the sauce properly. This is not a show dish. It is the kind of pot that goes on before the day takes hold, and by lunch the kitchen smells of beef, oregano, and lemon peel.
Lemonato is a family of pale Greek braises found across the mainland and islands, but the beef version is especially at home in Central Greece, where meat, olive oil, mountain oregano, and lemon formed a sauce before tomato became the default red answer. Tomatoes entered Greek cooking widely only in the nineteenth century, so these lemon-and-oil braises preserve an older habit of souring meat with citrus or wine. The dish is often made with veal in Greece, where moschari can mean young beef as well as beef more broadly.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
beef chuck, shin, or boneless short rib
Quantity
1.2kg
cut into 5cm pieces
fine sea salt
Quantity
9g
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
extra virgin olive oil, preferably Koroneiki
Quantity
80ml
yellow onions
Quantity
2 large
finely chopped
garlic cloves
Quantity
3
lightly crushed
dry white wine
Quantity
150ml
hot water or light beef stock
Quantity
500ml
plus more as needed
bay leaves
Quantity
2
dried Greek oregano
Quantity
1 teaspoon
lemon peel
Quantity
2 strips
yellow part only
fresh lemon juice
Quantity
80ml
from about 2 large lemons
all-purpose flour (optional)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
optional, for a slightly thicker village-style sauce
flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Quantity
2 tablespoons
chopped, optional for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| beef chuck, shin, or boneless short ribcut into 5cm pieces | 1.2kg |
| fine sea salt | 9g |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1/2 teaspoon |
| extra virgin olive oil, preferably Koroneiki | 80ml |
| yellow onionsfinely chopped | 2 large |
| garlic cloveslightly crushed | 3 |
| dry white wine | 150ml |
| hot water or light beef stockplus more as needed | 500ml |
| bay leaves | 2 |
| dried Greek oregano | 1 teaspoon |
| lemon peelyellow part only | 2 strips |
| fresh lemon juicefrom about 2 large lemons | 80ml |
| all-purpose flour (optional)optional, for a slightly thicker village-style sauce | 1 tablespoon |
| flat-leaf parsley (optional)chopped, optional for serving | 2 tablespoons |
Equipment Needed
- •wide heavy braising pot or Dutch oven, 28cm
- •fine grater or peeler for lemon peel
Instructions
- 1
Season the beef
Pat the beef very dry and season it with the salt and pepper. Let it stand for 15 minutes while you chop the onions. Dry meat browns; wet meat sweats, and this dish needs the quiet depth of browned beef under the lemon.
- 2
Brown in batches
Warm the olive oil in a wide heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown the beef in two or three batches, turning until the pieces have a deep golden crust on several sides, about 8 minutes per batch. Do not crowd the pot. Move the browned meat to a plate.
- 3
Soften the onions
Lower the heat to medium. Add the onions to the same pot and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, scraping up the browned bits, until the onions are soft and honey-colored at the edges. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, just until it smells sweet.
- 4
Start the braise
Return the beef and any juices to the pot. If you want a slightly thicker sauce, sprinkle in the flour now and stir for 1 minute so it loses its raw taste. Pour in the wine and let it bubble for 2 minutes, then add the hot water or stock, bay leaves, oregano, and lemon peel.
- 5
Simmer slowly
Bring the pot just to a boil, then lower the heat until the liquid barely trembles. Cover and cook for 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, turning the beef now and then, until a fork slides in without argument. Add a splash of hot water if the pot looks dry.
- 6
Add the lemon
Remove the bay leaves and lemon peel. Stir in the fresh lemon juice and simmer uncovered for 8 to 10 minutes, until the sauce is glossy and lightly thickened. Taste for salt. The lemon should be bright, not harsh; if your lemons are fierce, stop at 60ml and add the rest only if the pot asks for it.
Add lemon late. Long boiling dulls its fragrance and can pull bitterness from the peel and pith. - 7
Rest and serve
Let the beef rest off the heat for 10 minutes so the sauce settles. Spoon it into shallow bowls with its pale lemon sauce, a little parsley if you like, and fried potatoes, rice, or hilopites beside it.
Chef Tips
- •Use a cut with collagen: chuck, shin, or boneless short rib. Lean stewing beef looks tidy in the packet and turns dry in the pot. Λίγα και καλά, a few things, and good ones.
- •If your lemons are very sharp, use 60ml juice first, then taste. Lemonato should be bright enough to wake the beef, not so sour that it bites back.
- •This is good the next day. Reheat it gently with a spoonful of water, then refresh it with a small squeeze of lemon at the table.
Advance Preparation
- •The beef can be cut and salted up to 12 hours ahead, covered in the refrigerator.
- •The whole dish can be made 1 day ahead; chill it, remove any hardened fat if you like, and reheat gently before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 275g)
Calories
540 calories
Total Fat
39 g
Saturated Fat
12 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
26 g
Cholesterol
145 mg
Sodium
810 mg
Total Carbohydrates
8 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
3 g
Protein
39 g
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