Beef Stew Recipe

Ingredients

2 lbs. beef chuck (or beef stew meat) (I generally make bigger batches)
beef stock (opt)
Red Wine - usually Gallo Hearty Burgundy
onions
potatoes
carrots
celery

Preparation

Step 1

Buy some nice beef chuck and cut in 1 1/2" cubes (I usually cut a little bigger). Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roll in flour mixed with some baking powder (not a lot - a couple of teaspoons to a cup of flour, and I add some dried sage, too).

Melt some of the fat from the meat in a deep heavy pan (I use cast iron dutch oven and add some olive oil as there is generally not enough fat - I think meat used to be sold with lots more fat at the time this cookbook was published). Brown the meat cubes thoroughly in the fat to a rich dark color.

For added flavor, cook a slice or two of onion with the meat (I use wedges and watch carefully for burning - you can then switch out the almost burning ones and add a new one or two. I usually then eat the burned wedges. Yum.)

Cover with boiling water, stock or part tomato juice (yee, gods!), or red wine (I use a mixture of water and red wine - usually Gallo Hearty Burgundy, which is great for stew). The amount to use depends on the amount of gravy you want. For 2 pounds of meat, the usual amount is 1 quart. Bring to the boiling point. (I also add a bay leaf now.) Cover, reduce the heat and cook very slowly until the meat is fork tender. This will take 2-3 hours. (See below for adding veggies.)

If fat collects on the surface of the stew, skim it off with a spoon. Remove any pieces of fat. If the gravy is not as thick as you like it, mix 2 Tbsps. of flour (for about 2 cups of gravy) with 1/4 c. water until it is smooth (or shake it in a 'swirl mixer'. I am not sure what a 'swirl mixer' is, but there you have it), stir it into the stew (would not add it all at once, but gradually until the gravy is to your preference). Bring stew to a boil and cook for about 3 minutes. (I would bring to a hard simmer, not a boil, but up to you.)

Season to taste with salt and pepper and any added seasonings you like such as thyme, Worcestershire or chopped parsley. Serve with rice, noodles or dumplings. (What is with THAT? Serve with bread.)

Stew is always better if you cook it the day before, cool and refrigerate overnight and re-heat.

For Vegetable Beef Stew:
After cooking the stew 1 1/2 hours, add, for each serving, 2 small whole carrots or 1 large carrot, sliced or cubed, and 3 tiny onions. On half hour later, add 2 small whole potatoes or 1/2 c. slice potatoes. Add, if you like, peas, whole green beans, cauliflowerete's (their word) or mushrooms. (I add chucks of carrots, and large cubes of potatoes and chunks or wedges of onions - I usually add the onions at the beginning of the braising time and leave them in. Celery, cause Dad likes it - in chunks. I add veggies in gradual stages - carrots first, potatoes soon after and celery a little bit later.)