I know it isn’t exactly stew season (August) but I’ve had stew beef from the meat shack (Springhouse Farm Store) for a hot minute and stew needed to be made. Beef Stew is also not the most photogenic main course but man is it satisfying. So here it is – a quintessential, traditional, hearty, beautiful Beef Stew.
1-1 1/2 pounds stew meat
6-8 small potatoes (red or white) or 2 medium sized baking potatoes
2-3 medium carrots
3/4 cup tomatoes (cherry or regular sized, diced – can substitute with 1 can of diced tomatoes)
1 onion (Vidalia or Spanish/Yellow)
3 1/2 cups beef broth
Salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste
1 cup red wine
2 tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons Worchester sauce
2 bay leaves
2-3 tablespoons oregano
1/4 cup flour
3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
(optional) 6-8 button or cremini mushrooms, halved
Note: You can get away with shortening the simmer times slightly if you’re on a compressed timeline, but be sure the meat simmers for at least 1 1/2 hours total.
Heat oil in dutch oven or stew pot over high heat. Toss stew meat in flour, salt, and black pepper. Add meat to pot, ensuring not to crowd, and brown on all sides. Remove from pot and set aside.
Add vinegar, red wine, beef broth, and Worchester sauce to the pot and stir, scraping the leftover meat bits up off the bottom. Add the bay leaves, oregano, red pepper flakes, and black pepper, and bring to a boil. Add the meat and simmer on lowest heat, covered, for 2 hours.
Consume remainder of bottle of red wine, because, you know, it will go to waste… 😏
At the two hour mark, chop about 1/3 of the potatoes into course chunks and add to stew pot. Simmer another 1 hour.
Add carrots, remaining potatoes, onion, tomatoes, and mushrooms (if using) to pot and continue to simmer (covered) for an additional 45 minutes.
Stir vigorously and cook uncovered for an additional 30 minutes, or just let the bot sit so some of the liquid can evaporate. Serve hot, in cauldrons, with crusty bread and a flagon of wine, if at all possible. 🍷
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[…] Peasant food. Make-it-through-the-winter food. I am just as appreciative for dishes like these (and beef stew, and homemade beans, and tagine) as I am for Pot Roast and Pavlova. Also, if anyone else spent […]