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Beef Stew
I apologize profusely for seeming to abandon you over the last few weeks. Work life got a bit hectic. I had plans of catching up on recipes and housework over Memorial Day weekend. Then I lost a fight with a hedge trimmer and am now facing the possibility of reconstructive surgery on one of my fingers. Trust me, it looks awfully gnarly, but I didn’t lose my finger so that is something. I decided to up my intake of bone broth to facilitate healing and figured it was a good time to revisit the beef stew recipe I’ve been developing.
The mushroom seasoning is the key to the oomph of umami happening in this dish. I use the recipe for Magic Mushroom Powder from Nom Nom Paleo’s cookbook or get the recipe here, but you can use whatever you find as long as it is wheat-free. I highly recommend the cookbook, if you don't have a copy. There are a ton of yumtastic recipes in there!
Why 5 slices of bacon? Well, I love bacon and that is the exact number I need to use so the rest will fit on my sheet pan to bake off in the oven. It's a matter of practicality.
Beef Stew
Ingredients:
1-2 pounds beef stew meat
5 pieces of bacon, chopped
Fat of choice, ghee or coconut oil, about 2 tablespoons, if needed
2 teaspoons rosemary, divided (or 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped)
2 teaspoons thyme, divided (2 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped)
1 tablespoon of mushroom seasoning, divided
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1-2 stalks of celery, chopped
2-3 small onions, or 1 medium, chopped
2 small carrots. peeled and chopped
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
½ to 1 cup red wine (omit for 21DSD and increase beef broth to 2.5 to 3 cups)
2 cups or so of beef broth
1 8 ounce package of sliced baby portabella or cremini mushrooms
Directions:
Get all of your ingredients in place. If using fresh spices, remove the leaves from the stems and chop finely. About half of the spices will go on the meat and the other half will go on the veggies.
Place the meat on a plate and pat it dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle one half of the seasonings on the meat. Be sure to coat both sides.
Using a Dutch oven or an Instant Pot on Sauté, cook the bacon on low to render the fat. Scoop out the cooked bacon and set aside, leaving the bacon fat in the pan.
Add to the pot any additional fat needed to brown the meat. Brown the meat in the pot and remove it back to the plate. Leave the fat and juices in the pan.
Add the chopped vegetables (except garlic), and the other half of the seasonings. Sauté, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two but don’t let the garlic burn.
Add the balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pot, scraping the brown goodness off the bottom of the pan. Add the red wine, if using and allow it to simmer for a minute or two. Return the meat and any juices on the plate to the pot. Nestle the meat into the veggies. Add the bacon and any juices to the pot.
Add the beef broth.
If using the Instant Pot, cover the meat and vegetables with the sliced mushrooms. Put the lid on the pot and set on Stew for 100 minutes.
If using a Dutch oven, make sure to use enough broth to cover the meat as the Dutch oven will allow some liquid to evaporate. Add additional broth during cooking if it appears to be evaporating too much.
Also, leave the mushrooms out until the last 30-60 minutes of cooking time so they don’t overcook and get rubbery.
Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Check the meat after 1.5 hours. Cook up to 3 hours or until meat separates easily with a fork.
Notes:
Chop the fresh rosemary before adding to the stew or when you eat the stew it will be like eating small twigs. Trust me on this. I’ll admit that I forgot, more than once, so I had to come up with a remedy.
To remedy the situation if you inadvertently forget to chop the rosemary, strain the meat and vegetables out of the pot into a bowl, picking out the rosemary leaves as you go. Place the remaining liquid and rosemary leaves into a blender and pulse until the rosemary is blended into the liquid or at least in small pieces. Return the liquid to the pan along with the meat and vegetables and continue cooking until the meat is fork tender.
About the wine: Use a red wine that you like to drink. I prefer a drier red like a Cabernet or a Malbec. Just keep in mind that whatever you use, that flavor will come out in your final dish so make sure it is a bottle you like.
Don’t want to use wine? That’s okay, too. Just increase the beef broth to compensate.
