Beef Stew
with Potatoes, Carrots and Peas
The local farm from where I buy most of my beef sells a cut of stew meat, and so shortly after moving back to the United States, I placed an order to make a beef stew. I didn’t think about the fact that I didn’t have my nice, large Dutch oven, which is currently in my sea shipment. I only had a thin, cheep, medium-large sized pot that I picked up at the grocery store for less than $20. I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to nicely brown the meat, I’d burn the onion, and that pot was too small for the stew I wanted to make. Nevertheless, I still gave it a try, and now I’ve made this recipe 3 times in the same pot!
I learned that you don’t need a fancy pot to make an amazing batch of beef stew. However, there are some tricks to ensure the beef is tender and the broth is full of flavor. Here are my top three tips to make the most amazing, flavorful and tender beef stew:
1.) Don’t skip browning the meat. When browning the meat, work in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pot. You want space around each piece of meat. To avoid steaming the meat, make sure you pat the beef cubes dry before seasoning.
2.) Don’t skip the onion & red wine. I’ve made this stew without the onion before (because I though I had one, but didn’t) and it wasn’t quite as savory. A little bit of red wine will deglaze the pan, removing and dissolving browned food residue from the bottom of a pan and flavoring the stew.
3.) My last tip is to make sure to season the soup with salt before letting it simmer instead of waiting to season the soup right before you serve it. You need time to allow the salt to seep into the potatoes, carrots and beef to enhance their flavor.
If you follow these three tips and the recipe below, I’m confident that no matter what pot you have, you’ll end up with a delicious batch of beef stew!
Ingredients:
2 lb grass-fed beef, stew meat
1 yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup red wine
1.5 lb baby potatoes
3-4 carrots, largely diced
4 cups (32 oz) beef bone broth
1/2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1 cup frozen peas
Pink Himalayan salt & freshly ground black pepper
2-4 Tbsp avocado oil, for sautéing
Instructions:
Pat the beef dry, and season generously with salt and pepper.
Heat a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbsp of avocado oil. Swirl the pot to coat bottom of the pan with oil. Working in batches, brown the beef cubes on all sides, not cooking the meat entirely through. Add more avocado oil as necessary. Remove the beef and set aside.
In the same pot, add another 1 Tbsp avocado oil and the diced onion. Sauté the onion until it is soft, about 5-6 minutes.
Add red wine to deglaze the pan. Scrap browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Simmer 3-4 minutes.
Add the carrots, potatoes, browned beef, bone broth and thyme and bring to a boil. Season the broth to taste with pink Himalayan salt. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for approximately 2 hours.
About 5 minutes before serving, stir in the frozen peas. Serve the stew with sourdough or other bread of choice.