Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Good, Old-Fashioned Beef Stew

With all the single digit and below-zero temperatures and snow we're having, you won't be surprised to know that we're really digging comfort food this month. Last week, I made a big pot of soupy beef stew, plenty for nice hot lunches, too. I served it with a beautiful loaf of Pugliese bread (Jeannene has fun calling it "pugilist bread") from the grocer's bakery and my new favorite orange, the pink-fleshed Cara Cara. Have you tried them? Fab!


Old-Fashioned Beef Stew
2 lb. beef, cubed (I buy the pre-packaged stew beef for convenience.)
2 tbsp. butter
Flour 
3 cloves garlic, halved
1 tsp. thyme
2 bay leaves
48 oz. beef broth
3 potatoes, diced
7 small carrots, sliced
1/2 lb. frozen pearl onions
1 can diced tomatoes
Salt & pepper

Melt butter in soup pot. Toss beef with enough flour to coat all the pieces, shaking off any excess. Brown in butter. Add the rest and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 1 1/2-2 hours. 

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I can never get the right beef. I'm always looking for something that will practically fall apart, be tender, not chewy at the end and just delicious. Invariably, the few times I've tried, the meat has not been like this at all. What is your recommendation?

Jenny

Daria Schaffnit said...

Jenny, my go-to for any long-cooked beef dish, like pot roast or stew, is boneless chuck shoulder roast. Good luck!