This easy Jamaican-style stew oxtail is filled with deep and thick oxtail gravy. It is cooked down until it falls off the bone and has rich Caribbean flavors. You can make it on a stovetop, pressure cooker, or my all-time favorite: a slow cooker.

Ahhh, I can’t believe I’m here to show you my granny’s oxtail recipe. Oxtails have been a favorite in my household way before they became so popular in the USA.

It used to be no big deal to have them on Sundays or any regular day. Now the prices have gone up, but that still doesn’t stop me from enjoying this delicious dish.

My recipe features thick seasoned oxtail stew in burned brown sugar. It is truly one of my secrets to getting those bold flavors we all know and love.

What is Jamaican Oxtail Stew?

Jamaican Oxtail Stew is a hearty, slow-cooked dish made with oxtail (the beef tail), seasoned with a blend of traditional Jamaican spices, and cooked until the meat is incredibly tender and falling off the bone.

It’s a mix of flavors, combining savory, sweet, and spicy notes, thanks to ingredients like allspice, thyme, scotch bonnet pepper, and browning sauce.

The slow cooking process allows the oxtail to release its natural gelatin and collagen, creating a rich, thick, and deeply flavorful gravy.

Classic Jamaican Oxtail Stew Recipe

For Washing the Oxtail

• 3 lbs oxtail
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• ½ lemon (or lime), squeezed

Fresh seasonings & aromatics

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• ½ yellow bell pepper, chopped
• ½ red bell pepper, chopped
• ½ green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, sliced
• 2 tomatoes, chopped (use 1½ in seasoning, save the rest for cooking)
• 2 stalks scallion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 tsp pimento seeds (allspice)
• 1 small piece ginger (1–2 tsp grated)
• 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper (or 1½ tsp chopped if you want it spicy)

Powder seasonings

• 2 tsp all-purpose seasoning
• 1 tbsp jerk seasoning
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp black pepper

Marinating

• 1½ tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tsp olive oil

Browning the oxtail

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 heaping tbsp brown sugar

Stewing

• 10 cups hot water (add more as needed)
• 1 tbsp all-purpose seasoning
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Remaining onions, tomatoes, carrots, scallion, thyme
• ½ tsp pimento seeds
• 3 crushed garlic cloves
• 1 tsp jerk powder seasoning
• ½ tsp paprika
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp butter
• 1½ tbsp ketchup
• 2 tsp brown sugar

Finishing

• 1 can butter beans (drained & rinsed)

How to Make Jamaican Oxtail Stew

Add the oxtail to a bowl. Wash with vinegar, lemon, and cold water. Rinse thoroughly and remove any excess fat. Drain well.

Add all-purpose seasoning, black pepper, paprika, ginger, jerk seasoning, thyme, garlic, scallion, pimento seeds, onion, carrot, tomato, bell peppers, and scotch bonnet. Add soy sauce and olive oil. Massage the seasoning into the oxtail.
Cover and marinate overnight (or minimum 8 hours).

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a dutch oven. Add the brown sugar. Let it melt and turn dark brown (almost black). Once foamy and bubbling, add the seasoned oxtail pieces (shake off excess veggies)

Let the oxtail brown on each side for 2–3 minutes.

Pour in 10 cups hot water — enough to cover the oxtail. Add all-purpose seasoning, black pepper, thyme, onion, carrot, tomato, and garlic. Cover and cook on medium heat for 1 hour.

If the water reduces too much, add 1 cup more. Add thyme, scallion, pimento seeds, and garlic and cook another 25 minutes.

Pour in the remaining seasoned vegetables from your marinating bowl with ½ cup water. Then, add jerk powder, paprika, salt, butter, ketchup, and brown sugar. Stir and let simmer for 5 minutes uncovered.

Add 1 can of rinsed butter beans. Simmer 6 minutes until the gravy is thick and glossy. The oxtail should be tender and falling off the bone with a rich caramel-brown gravy.

My best Tips

Making Jamaican oxtail always requires patience. You can let the meat marinate overnight because the seasoning clings better and gives that deep flavor. But 30 minutes is just fine, also.

Most people do not brown the sugar, and that’s ok. I believe it’s a Caribbean thing. Also, we always wash our meat, but you don’t have to because it is totally optional.

Similarly, add water little by little instead of flooding the pot, because you want the gravy thick, not watery.

Pressure Cooker Steps

Start exactly the same way: wash, clean, and season your 3 pounds of oxtail with the vinegar, lemon, onions, garlic, scallion, thyme, pimento seed, ginger, carrots, tomatoes, jerk seasoning, paprika, black pepper, all-purpose seasoning, scotch bonnet, bell peppers, and dark soy sauce. Let it marinate just like you normally would.

Turn your pressure cooker on Sauté and add a little oil. When the oil heats up, sprinkle in your brown sugar and let it melt and get dark, just like when you “burn the sugar” on the stovetop.

When the sugar is caramelized, add the marinated oxtail pieces (try not to add the onions and scallion at this stage) and brown them a bit.

Pour in enough hot water to cover the oxtail, the same way you do in the regular method. Add your extra all-purpose seasoning, black pepper, thyme, crushed garlic, scallion, pimento, and a little of the leftover fresh ingredients you saved back in the bowl.

Press Cancel, put the lid on, and cook on High Pressure for 45 minutes.

When the time is up, let the pressure naturally release. Open the pot and check the meat — it should be tender and almost falling off the bone.

Turn the cooker back to Sauté. Pour in the rest of the bowl marinade with the carrots, tomatoes, thyme, bell peppers, ginger, garlic, everything. Add your jerk seasoning, paprika, salt to taste, ketchup, butter, and brown sugar. Stir well and let it bubble for a few minutes.

Add your drained butter beans, and let everything simmer until the gravy thickens up and gets rich and glossy.

Turn off the cooker, taste, adjust seasoning, and enjoy your Jamaican oxtail stew — pressure-cooker style but full of the same flavor.

The Slow Cooker Instructions

Wash and marinate your oxtails as I previously instructed.

When you’re ready to cook, heat a pan on the stove with a little oil. Sprinkle in your brown sugar and let it melt and get dark to “burn” it, just like your stovetop method.

Add the oxtail pieces (without all the onions and scallion yet) and let them brown for a couple of minutes. This step gives the stew that deep color and rich flavor.

Transfer the browned oxtail into your slow cooker. Pour hot water over the oxtail until it’s fully covered. Add in some of the fresh ingredients you saved back, the extra thyme, scallion, tomato, crushed garlic, and pimento.

Cover and cook on:

• Low for 8–10 hours, or
• High for 4–5 hours,

until the oxtail is tender and nearly falling off the bone.

Once the oxtail is tender, add the remaining ingredients from your bowl, the rest of the tomatoes, bell peppers, carrots, thyme, and the leftover marinade juices. Stir in your jerk seasoning, paprika, salt, ketchup, a teaspoon of butter, and 2 teaspoons brown sugar (optional but helps balance the flavor).

Let everything cook for another 20–30 minutes so the gravy thickens and the seasoning blends in fully.

Finally, add your drained butter beans, stir gently, and cook for another 10 minutes until the beans heat through and the gravy gets glossy and rich.

Turn off the slow cooker. Taste and adjust salt or seasoning if needed. Your Jamaican-style oxtail is ready.

FAQ:

• Can I make this stew spicier?
  • Absolutely! Add more scotch bonnet pepper, or use a hotter variety. You can also add a dash of hot sauce to the stew.
• Can I use other vegetables?
  • Yes, other root vegetables like sweet potatoes and turnips are great additions.
• Why is brown sauce used?
  • Browning sauce gives the stew a deep color and sweet caramel-like flavor, which is traditional in Jamaican cooking.

I hope you enjoy this Classic Jamaican Oxtail Stew as much as I do. It’s a true comfort food that’s perfect for any occasion. Don’t forget to leave a comment below and let me know how your stew turns out!

Classic Jamaican Oxtail Stew Recipe

Recipe by Ren PetersCourse: Jamaican Cooking

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

40

minutes

Calories

300

kcal

A rich, fall-off-the-bone Jamaican oxtail stew simmered in a deep brown gravy made with burned sugar, fresh herbs, aromatics, and butter beans. Slow-cooked to perfection with classic Caribbean seasonings.

Ingredients

• 3 lbs oxtail

• 2 tbsp white vinegar

• ½ lemon (or lime), squeezed

• Fresh seasonings & aromatics

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• ½ yellow bell pepper, chopped

• ½ red bell pepper, chopped

• ½ green bell pepper, chopped

• 1 medium carrot, sliced

• 2 tomatoes, chopped (use 1½ in seasoning, save the rest for cooking)

• 2 stalks scallion, chopped

• 4 cloves garlic, chopped

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme

• 1 tsp pimento seeds (allspice)

• 1 small piece ginger (1–2 tsp grated)

• 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper (or 1½ tsp chopped if you want it spicy)

• Powder seasonings

• 2 tsp all-purpose seasoning

• 1 tbsp jerk seasoning

• 1 tsp paprika

• 1 tsp black pepper

• 1½ tbsp dark soy sauce

• 2 tsp olive oil

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 heaping tbsp brown sugar

• 10 cups hot water (add more as needed)

• 1 tbsp all-purpose seasoning

• 1 tsp black pepper

• Remaining onions, tomatoes, carrots, scallion, thyme

• ½ tsp pimento seeds

• 3 crushed garlic cloves

• 1 tsp jerk powder seasoning

• ½ tsp paprika

• Salt to taste

• 1 tsp butter

• 1½ tbsp ketchup

• 2 tsp brown sugar

• Finishing

• 1 can butter beans (drained & rinsed)

Directions

• Add the oxtail to a bowl. Wash with vinegar, lemon, and cold water. Rinse thoroughly and remove any excess fat. Drain well.
• Add all-purpose seasoning, black pepper, paprika, ginger, jerk seasoning, thyme, garlic, scallion, pimento seeds, onion, carrot, tomato, bell peppers, and scotch bonnet. Add soy sauce and olive oil. Massage the seasoning into the oxtail.
• Cover and marinate overnight (or minimum 8 hours).
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a dutch oven. Add the brown sugar. Let it melt and turn dark brown (almost black). Once foamy and bubbling, add the seasoned oxtail pieces (shake off excess veggies)
• Let the oxtail brown on each side for 2–3 minutes.
• Pour in 10 cups hot water — enough to cover the oxtail. Add all-purpose seasoning, black pepper, thyme, onion, carrot, tomato, and garlic. Cover and cook on medium heat for 1 hour.
• If the water reduces too much, add 1 cup more. Add thyme, scallion, pimento seeds, and garlic and cook another 25 minutes.
• Pour in the remaining seasoned vegetables from your marinating bowl with ½ cup water. Then, add jerk powder, paprika, salt, butter, ketchup, and brown sugar. Stir and let simmer for 5 minutes uncovered.
• Add 1 can of rinsed butter beans. Simmer 6 minutes until the gravy is thick and glossy. The oxtail should be tender and falling off the bone with a rich caramel-brown gravy.