Name: Rinflajš sa paradajz sosom
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Total time: 2 h 55 min
Yield: 4 main-dish servings plus broth
Cuisine: Serbian cuisine
Ingredients: 800 g boneless beef shoulder, one large piece or two thick pieces; 300 g carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces; 150 g celeriac, peeled and cut into chunks; 100 g parsley root, peeled; 150 g onion, halved; 400 g potatoes, peeled and halved; 2500 ml water, cold; 10 g fine salt, divided; 2 g black peppercorns, whole; 500 ml strained tomato juice or passata; 20 g butter; 20 g wheat flour; 6 g garlic, finely chopped; 250 ml reserved beef broth, hot; 8 g sugar

Yield 4 main-dish servings plus broth

Preparation time 25 minutes

Cooking time 150 minutes

Passive time 0 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Rinflajš with boiled beef, root vegetables and tomato sauce

Rinflajš sa paradajz sosom is less a single-pot stew than a coordinated way of using one long simmer to produce several parts of a meal. In the Vojvodina Sunday-lunch tradition, beef and root vegetables cook slowly in water to create a clear, savoury broth. The broth can be served first, while the cooked meat and vegetables become the main course with a separate sauce.

Beef shoulder suits this method because connective tissue softens during a long, quiet simmer. A rolling boil works against the desired result: it agitates proteins into the broth, makes the liquid cloudier and can leave the meat tight before the connective tissue has relaxed. Gentle bubbling gives the shoulder time to become tender while keeping the vegetables recognisable.

The vegetables are added in stages because they do not all tolerate two hours of cooking. Carrot, celeriac, parsley root and onion can flavour the broth for much of the simmer. Potatoes are added later so they become tender without disintegrating. This sequencing is what lets the same pot produce both a useful soup and a plate of intact vegetables.

The tomato sauce is prepared separately rather than turning the broth into a tomato stew. Butter and flour form a pale thickening base; the flour needs a short cook before tomato juice and reserved broth are whisked in. That brief step removes raw-flour flavour without browning the roux, so the finished sauce stays bright and smooth rather than nutty and dark.

A small amount of garlic, sugar and broth rounds the acidity of the tomato without making the sauce sweet. The sauce should coat a spoon and flow over slices of beef, not sit as a dense paste. Reserved broth is especially useful here because it carries the same beef-and-root-vegetable flavour as the main dish and links the components on the plate.

The meat is safely cooked once it has exceeded 63 °C, but this dish continues far beyond that point because tenderness, not minimum temperature, determines doneness. The final plate should show sliceable but yielding beef, soft vegetables that still hold their shape and a tomato sauce smooth enough to bind each bite without masking the broth-cooked character of the meat.

Practical

ServingServe the clear broth as a first course if desired, then plate sliced boiled beef with the cooked vegetables and spoon tomato sauce alongside or over the meat.
Make aheadThe beef and broth can be cooked a day ahead, chilled promptly, and reheated before the tomato sauce is made.
Storage and reheatingRefrigerate meat, vegetables, broth and sauce within 2 hours at 4 °C or below; use within 3–4 days. Reheat leftovers to 74 °C, adding a little broth to the sauce if it has thickened.

Ingredients

Boiled beef and vegetables

800 g boneless beef shoulder, one large piece or two thick pieces
300 g carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces
150 g celeriac, peeled and cut into chunks
100 g parsley root, peeled
150 g onion, halved
400 g potatoes, peeled and halved
2500 ml water, cold
10 g fine salt, divided
2 g black peppercorns, whole

Tomato sauce

500 ml strained tomato juice or passata
20 g butter
20 g wheat flour
6 g garlic, finely chopped
250 ml reserved beef broth, hot
8 g sugar

Directions

Cook the beef and broth

Start the brothTrim the beef only of heavy surface gristle, prepare the root vegetables and potatoes, and keep the potatoes separate for later. The vegetables are in large pieces that can survive a long simmer.
Add root vegetablesPut the beef, onion, carrots, celeriac, parsley root, peppercorns, water and most of the salt into the pot and bring slowly to a gentle boil, skimming foam as it rises. Keep the heat at medium. The broth has reached a gentle boil and loose foam has been removed.
Finish with potatoesLower to a quiet simmer and cook until the beef is tender; add the potatoes for the final 30 minutes so they cook through without disintegrating. Maintain a gentle low simmer. A thin knife enters the beef with little resistance and the potatoes are tender but intact.

Make the tomato sauce and serve

Lift and portionLift the beef and vegetables to a warm platter, strain enough broth for the sauce, and arrange the remaining broth for soup service. The meat rests intact and 250 ml clear hot broth is reserved for the sauce.
Cook the tomato sauceMelt the butter, cook the flour and garlic briefly without darkening, then whisk in the tomato and reserved broth and simmer until lightly thickened; finish with the sugar and remaining salt. Keep the heat at medium-low. The sauce coats a spoon lightly but still pours easily over the meat and vegetables.

Practical

Substitutions

Replacing celeriac with the same weight of additional parsley root and carrot is workable here. The broth remains aromatic but loses celeriac’s earthy celery note.

Troubleshooting

The broth is cloudy and the meat feels tight. The pot boiled too hard. Reduce the heat to a bare simmer and extend cooking until the shoulder is tender.

Troubleshooting

The tomato sauce tastes floury. The flour was not cooked before the liquids were added. Cook the butter-flour mixture briefly, keeping it pale, before whisking in tomato and broth.

Nutrition

Serving size1/4 of beef, vegetables and sauce
Calories620 kcal
Carbohydrates45 g
Protein50 g
Fat27 g
Fibre8 g
Sodium900 mg

Figures are approximate per serving and can shift with ingredient brands, trimming, absorption and exact portioning.

Allergens and food safety

Milk and wheat/gluten in the tomato sauce. Celery family allergens may be relevant because celeriac and parsley root are used. Whole beef should reach at least 63 °C internally with the applicable rest guidance; this recipe then continues simmering to tenderness. Refrigerate cooked components within 2 hours at 4 °C or below. Reheat leftovers to 74 °C.

FAQ

Why keep the broth at a quiet simmer?

A gentle simmer tenderises shoulder while helping the broth stay clearer and the vegetables more intact. A hard boil agitates the pot and can toughen the meat before it becomes tender.

Result: Tender boiled beef and intact root vegetables with a smooth, bright tomato sauce.

Key: Simmer the beef quietly for tenderness, then cook the tomato roux separately.