Because I need to write something, and this was pretty tasty.
It was a recipe snagged from the Journal food section a couple of weeks back. I like beef stew, but it does begin to get a little same-y after awhile so something different sounded good. Easy to make, doesn’t take forever, and there’s plenty of downtime for you to do whatever while it happily simmers away. It also doesn’t require 7 different pots and pans and a team of dedicated dishwashers and sous chefs to make
Heat oil in a dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat until sizzling hot I used olive oil, you could also use vegetable oil according to the recipe. It specified 2 tablespoons, but getting too exact with stuff like that leads to cooking being less fun and more a pain in the ass. Save precise measurements for baking and go for it.
Brown 2 pounds of stew beef in 4 small batches. Set each batch aside as it finishes, sprinkling a bit of flour on it as you go (total of about a 1/4 cup for all of it) If you need help with this part, you need to turn the stove off and pick up a pizza menu. Just give up now and prevent the inevitable kitchen fire.
Once the beef is all out of the pan, throw 1 whole large onion rough chopped, 2 cloves of minced garlic and 1 teaspoon of fine grated ginger in to the pan The recipe calls for the onion to be chopped in to 8 big pieces lengthwise. I realize it is going to come apart during cooking, but that’s still going to make for some big pieces of onion so I chopped it smaller than that. Still nice, big chunks, but nothing that stupid. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the onion begins to soften. So far, easier than tying your shoe. If you’re still rocking the velcro, you’re beyond help anyway.
Add 1 cup of beef broth to the pot. Make sure you scrape up any browned bits off the pan and stir it up. Add the already cooked beef, 1 796 ml can of diced tomatoes, 2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce, 2 Tbsp paprika, 1 Tsp dried sage, 1 bay leaf, 1 cinnamon stick, 1/2 Tsp chili pepper flakes, 1/2 Tsp salt, 1/2 Tsp pepper Now, seeing as my mom was also going to be eating this, I slashed the chili flake in half. And it was actually really nice at that level…good heat without inducing a pepper heat snot flow that has everyone running for tissues. I am fairly confident that nobody has ever previously made a post about food prep that included the words ‘snot flow’. We’re entering unexplored country here, folks! Bring it to a simmer, turn the heat down to a level just sufficient to keep it simmering, and let it burble away for an hour (or until the meat is fork tender) I didn’t mention previously that you should stir everything for a bit once it was added to the pot. If you needed that tip, please hit yourself in the face or groin (your choice) with the biggest spoon you own.
Remove the cinnamon stick I suppose it isn’t the end f the world if you don’t dig it out, just make sure whoever is eating it knows to watch for it. Add 1/2 cup raisins, 1/2 cup olives and 1 whole sweet green pepper rough chopped I know, I know…raisins? Really? Yes, really. It works. I had half a green pepper and half a yellow one, and used both of those. It actually made for a nice looking bowl and tossed another color in to the mix. But go all green if you’re a stickler for rules. Or maybe you’re some Neanderthal racist who still sees color when judging your bell peppers, in which case who am I to judge? You dick. Cook for 30-40 minutes more, until the vegetables are tender
And that’s it. Honestly, if you can’t manage that, you need to be kept away from anything with a sharp edge on it for the rest of your life. And maybe leaving the house ever again should be forgotten…the outside world is too dangerous for you.
The finished product was tasty, BUT I did feel it was missing something. I think that the next time I make this (and there will be a next time), I’m going to add some sweet potato or yam. The flavour would fit nicely, and a bit of starch could launch this thing out of the park.
