Hearty Beef Stew

I thought I'd make my last pot of comforting beef stew until winter comes again.  If the mention of beef stew sends you in the other direction, because you feel it is too difficult or involved, let me set your mind at ease.  It is very easy, however, it does take a while to simmer.  Trust me, you don't want to miss this step, especially if you are using stewing beef.  This is what tenderizes the beef and makes it fall apart.  Simmering also blends all the flavors and it becomes a pot of nice thick, hearty, delicious, mouth watering stew.

What I do is chop all the vegetables at the beginning and put them on plates and cover loosely with plastic wrap.  It makes it so much easier because you can just toss them in when needed.  I would definitely recommend browning the beef as well.  This adds deep flavor that you don't want to miss out on. 

It's nice that it doesn't take very much active time, it just needs time to simmer.  I like the fact that you can just keep one eye on it and go about your day.  The aroma it produces in your house will make you count down until you get to savour every last bite in your bowl.  This is a great way to get kids to eat vegetables too.  It is so yummy that hopefully they'll be asking for seconds.

Like I mentioned, this is a very easy HEARTY BEEF STEW that is full of healthy vegetables, flavorful thick broth and meat that falls apart.  How much better could it get than that?  The only thing is, I should wait until winter comes to make it again--if I can wait that long.

I use another great tip for the extra tomato paste.  I use what I need and then scoop out the rest as tablespoon portions and place on a piece of plastic wrap.  I fold it over and make a kind of ball or little package.  I then add them all to a medium size ziploc bag and put in the freezer.  You could also freeze tablespoon portions in an ice cube tray.  After they are frozen you can put them in a ziploc bag.  This is so handy when making meals.  You just pull out one or two cubes and toss in your meal.  It adds great extra flavor.  They can go into soups, stews, sauces, or almost anything being cooked on the stove top.  This helps eliminate the rest going bad in the fridge if you forget about it.

I hope you enjoy this Sinfully Healthy Foods recipe and I'd love to hear your comments.  Take care! 

From Browning Beef to a Mouth Watering Stew for Dinner!

HEARTY BEEF STEW

TOTAL TIME:  3 HRS

SERVES 4-6 

5 tbsp EVOO

1 lg onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp no added salt tomato paste (from small 156 ml can) 

6 medium Russet potatoes, cut into 1" cubes

4 carrots, cut into 1" chunks

4 celery stalks, cut into 1" chunks

1/2- 3/4 c whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp dried rosemary

1 pkg (800g, 1.70 lbs) stewing beef, cubed

1 box (900 ml, 1 qt, @4 cups) beef broth

1 pkg (227g) sliced mushrooms

1 c frozen peas

Add 3 tbsp EVOO in large pot.  Turn heat to medium high.  In large bowl add whole wheat flour, S + P and 1/2 tbsp rosemary.  Mix well and dredge beef in flour mixture.  Shake off excess flour and place in pot in one layer.  Discard remaining flour mixture.  Brown beef on all sides.  Remove beef to a plate.  Turn heat down to medium and add 2 tbsp EVOO, onions, garlic and tomato paste.  After a few mins when onions start to get translucent, add beef back in and add broth.  Turn to med high heat and bring to a boil.  Once boiling reduce to med low heat, cover and let cook about two hours, stirring occasionally.

Add pots, carrots, celery and cook about thirty mins.  Add sliced mushrooms and peas and cook another thirty mins.  When done, veggies and meat will be tender and stew will be nice and thick.  ENJOY!