Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 907 g top sirloin steak, diced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 medium sweet onion, diced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 227 g cremini mushrooms, halved
- 23 g all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 120 ml dry red wine
- 600 ml beef stock
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 large russet potato, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
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Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
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Season steak with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
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Working in batches, add steak to the stockpot and cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, about 6-8 minutes; set aside.
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Add onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned, about 3-4 minutes.
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Whisk in flour and tomato paste until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
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Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the stockpot.
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Stir in beef stock, thyme, bay leaves and steak.
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Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until beef is very tender, about 30 minutes.
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Stir in potato; simmer until potatoes are just tender and stew has thickened, about 20 minutes.
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Remove and discard thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Stir in parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.* Serve immediately.
Notes
Prep ahead of time. Save time by prepping and dicing the meat and vegetables ahead of time (minus the potatoes as they will brown if chopped too early).
Avoid “stew meat”. Stew meat is often times a random mix of lean scraps that turn out dry and rubbery.
Sear the meat. Browning the beef first is key here. That dark crust on the sirloin steak will create such richer, deeper flavors in your stew (plus, the browned bits at the bottom of the pot are all lovely bits here, adding so much flavor).
Choose a wine you will drink. A dry red wine (cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir or merlot) is great here – it does not have to be anything fancy or overpriced. Just something you don’t mind sipping on since you will have an open bottle.
Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your beef stew. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety.
Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
Freeze in individual portions. This will allow for easy serving and thawing, perfect for a quick lunch or fast dinner. Always leave a little bit of space at the top of your container or freezer bag as the liquid will expand as it freezes, squeezing out the extra air to prevent freezer burn.
Imported from Mela.
