Basic Beef Stew
Serves: 2 – 4Course: Meat, Poultry Seafood Entrees
Season(s): Spring, Fall, Winter
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- salt & ground black pepper
- 1 pound cubed beef
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or bacon fat
- 2 small onions, peeled & quartered
- 3 large garlic cloves, peeled & halved
- 2 medium leeks, trimmed, cleaned and roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 3 cups beef stock
- 3 carrots, cut into large chunks
- 1 bay leaf
- 5 ounces mushrooms, whole if small or cut into large chunks
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 300° F.
Put the flour on a dinner plate or in a large, shallow bowl and season it with salt and pepper; set aside. Pat the beef chunks dry with paper towel. Heat the oil/fat in a large frying pan. Add the beef to the hot pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the chunks are browned on all sides. Remove the beef with a slotted spoon or spatula and place it in the flour, turning each piece to completely coat it. Transfer the beef chunks to an ovenproof casserole dish and set aside.
Return the frying pan with the oil and beef drippings to the stove. Add the onion, garlic and leeks. Saute for a minute until the vegetables are coated, fragrant and slightly softened. Transfer the vegetables to the casserole dish holding the beef and return the frying pan to the stove.
Add the wine to the frying pan and cook over medium heat until the liquid has been reduced by about two thirds. Stir in two cups of the beef stock. Pour the liquid over the beef and vegetables in the casserole, add the carrots and bay leaf, and stir to combine. If you are using unsalted stock, you may want to add salt to the mixture now as well.
Place the casserole in the oven and cook for two hours, checking occasionally after the first 45 minutes to make sure the stew has not become dry. If it has, add more stock. After two hours, add the mushrooms, stir, and return the casserole to the oven for 30 minutes. The stew can stay in the oven for up to a total of four hours if you like it very cooked down. Remove the casserole from the oven, adjust the salt and pepper as desired, and serve.
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