Stewing slowly …
May 1, 2012 in Beef
We are shooting some more I love cooking clips tomorrow and one of the dishes will be a slow beef stew. I love slow foods and winter provides the perfect ambience for this kind of stew. One of the nice things about winter stews is that you can use the cheapest cut of beef and I do! The sinew and fatty bits you find in cheap cuts of meat respond extremely well to slow cooking which all together, ensure a wonderful flavoursome stew.
This recipe makes my favourite beef stew as it is cooked in its own juices, so to speak. I prepare a lavish stock beforehand in which the meat simmers long and slowly. There is something in slow food that spells ‘quality of life’ for me, so you may get many slow recipes on this blog this winter. Here is the first one, with love. Remember though, that cooking is subjective, cooking is an art, cooking is about you so make it yours by increasing or reducing any of the quantities of the ingredients. Just don’t speed up the cooking. You’d be speeding up life.
Slow Beef Stew
- 1,6 kg thick beef blade slices
- olive oil
- 2 onions, coarsely chopped
- 150 g streaky bacon, coarsely sliced
- 2 large carrots, thinly sliced
- 4 large sticks celery, thinly sliced
- 250 g large brown mushrooms, coarsely chopped
- 1 x 35 g sachet of concentrated wet beef stock
- 30 g tomato paste
- 250 ml good dry red wine
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 large cloves of garlic, chopped coarsely
- 2 beef stock cubes, crumbled
- 4 large thyme stalks
- 250 g baby onions
- 250 g white button mushrooms
- 45 ml melted butter
- 45 ml flour
- salt and milled black pepper
- 90 ml finely chopped parsley or basil
- whole basil or Italian parsley
Take your time with the meat. It is worth it. First slice the meat off the bones. Reserve the bones and trim the meat of only the hard bits of sinew and the large bits of fat, but leave some fat as it offers the most flavour. Now cut the meat into rustic chunk about 4 cm. Place the meat in a bowl, cover and place in the fridge until required.
Cover the bottom of a large heavy-bottomed saucepan with oil and heat until smoking hot. Quickly brown the bones of the meat and remove from pan. Add the onions and the bacon. Stir quickly to prevent catching. Add the carrots and celery and sauté until everything is nicely browned. Add the brown mushrooms and stir fry until they have released their juices. Return the bones to the pan and pour in sufficient boiling water to more-than-cover the food in the saucepan. Add the sachet of concentrated stock, the tomato paste, red wine, bay leaves, garlic, stock cubes and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Simmer for an hour. Strain the stock into a clean bowl. Push the vegetable mixture against the strainer to extract as much of the stock as possible. You do not need the vegetable and bones mixture any longer so do what you deem fit with it. Set aside the stock.
In another saucepan, add some olive oil. Brown the meat in batches. Return all the meat to the pan and add the stock. Make sure that the meat is covered with liquid at all times. You really want a saucy stew so if the stock is too little to cover the meat, add more red wine. Bring to a boil, remove any solids or scum that rise to the top, reduce heat, cover and simmer for an hour or more until the meat is tender enough to your liking.
Meanwhile heat some olive oil and brown the baby onions all over. Add the mushrooms and brown as well. Once the meat is tender, add the onions and mushrooms and continue to cook another ten minute or so until the onions are tender.
Finally, mix together the melted butter and flour and add spoons full of this paste to the simmering stew, stirring until the sauce is thickened to your liking. Now taste and adjust reasoning with salt, milled black pepper and even chopped thyme and minced garlic. Stir in the parsley or basil and scatter with the whole herb leaves. Serve with creamy horseradish mashed potato and steamed broccoli.
Serves 6
Chef’s hint: you can use beef shin meat as a superb alternative. It is full of connective tissue and a little marbled fat to ensure moisture, flavour and taste.
For more beefy recipes, click here.
Sous Chef said on May 1, 2012
This is my kind of food, I use shin a lot, I think it gives good flavour. It must be the pommie in me but I love winter foods.
Anne Myers said on May 2, 2012
Thank you Sue! Then I must be a closet pommie as I adore winter foods too! And all the other things that go with winter: loads of burning candles every night, red wine, log fires, fluffy duvets, thick red socks, hot cocolate … hmmm
Bob said on May 4, 2012
If you enjoy “hot cocolate (sic)) and other delights, it makes you a edonist and a kindred spirit:-) Why are all these replies from ladies, when we know the best cooks are men? Just kidding; your recipe looks good and I’ll try it, though I suspect a good deal of it will be destined for the freezer and “repeat” winter dinners.
Hamba Kahle
Anne Myers said on May 4, 2012
Well, if that makes me a ‘edonist’, Bob, then I shall have to add hot cocolate to my to-do list for this weekend
…! And welcome! We surely will appreciate some men in blogland and I fully agree with you … men are better cooks – generally. I think. Hamba kahle too.
nina said on May 1, 2012
I think I must have a few of these ordered from your kitchen to mine!! Looks good Anne!
Anne Myers said on May 2, 2012
Pop in today, it’s the crew lunch!
nina said on May 2, 2012
So wish I could Anne, things are a bit hectic here, prepping for Bloem!!
Enjoy!
drizzleanddip said on May 2, 2012
Looks delicious and so what I’m into right now!
Anne Myers said on May 3, 2012
Best stew they ever had, crew voted yesterday! What worries me is that it burnt a little while (simmering to give off steam) we were shooting … and they did not taste it! So much for their tastebuds and stew savvy
xxx
mitzireddy said on May 2, 2012
We had the tomato smoked paprika beef stew from your website for supper tonight – delicious – the thick roasted tomato sauce is finger licking good. I am an absolute fan – love trying out recipes from your website, Ann.
Anne Myers said on May 3, 2012
So good to hear, Mitzi! You are obviously a good cook, darling! Some of our recipes require ‘personal flair’
Loren! said on May 4, 2012
Cannot wait to try this!
I’ve just treated myself to a slow-cooker; any tips for preparing this dish in it? (very amateur cook *blush*)
Anne Myers said on May 4, 2012
Welcome, and happy slow cooking! I think you can follow the method to after this part in the recipe: “Bring to a boil, remove any solids or scum that rise to the top …” and then you put the boiling hot food in the slow cooker and cook on its highest setting for as long as the book says. Since you are a novice with the machine, check from time to time and when you like the tenderness of the meat, you can return it to a normal saucepan to thicken that delicious gravy/sauce. If you want. If you don’t then serve as is after you’ve adjusted your seasoning. Good luck, enjoy and please DO let me know if you nailed it! Lekker weekend