Dry-aged rib of beef with ale-glazed onions

1. Start with the salt rub. Grind all the peppercorns and the garlic in a pestle and mortar, until the garlic is well minced and the peppercorns are crushed. Add the rosemary and thyme and lightly crush them too. Add the salt and mix together until everything is well incorporated. Drizzle a little olive oil all over the beef and rub it in with your hands, then rub in the salt mixture. Set aside until the beef comes to room temperature – about 1 hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 180˚C, gas mark 4. Wipe off and discard the excess salt rub from the beef, then sit the rib on a rack inside a roasting tin. Roast for about 2 hours for medium rare.

3. Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the shallots, carrot, celery, garlic, bay, thyme and peppercorns in a saucepan. Cover with the wine and stock, and bring to the boil. Reduce and simmer briskly until ¼ of the liquid remains – about 20-25 minutes. Pour through a sieve into a pan, squeezing the vegetables to extract all the liquid; set aside.

4. To make the onions, melt the butter in a frying pan; add the onions. Fry gently over a medium heat for about 8-10 minutes, until they start to soften but do not colour. Season with the salt and sugar, turn up the heat slightly and allow the onions to start to caramelise and gently brown. Pour over the ale and simmer for about 35-40 minutes, until most of the liquid has reduced and you have a chutney-like consistency.

5. Remove the beef from the oven and transfer to a carving board to rest for 20-30 minutes, loosely covered with foil. Place the roasting tin on the hob over a low heat. Spoon off and discard any excess fat, then add a splash of water and use a wooden spoon to scrape any sticky bits from the bottom of the pan. Pour through a sieve into the red wine sauce.

6. Finish the red wine sauce by bringing it to the boil. Scoop out the marrow from the bone and very fi nely dice. Stir it into the sauce and bubble briefl y until melted. The easiest way to carve the beef is to cut the whole joint away from the bone and then thinly slice. Add any carving juices to the sauce and serve with the ale-glazed onions.