Friday, January 27, 2012

My Journey For The Best Beef Stew!

Today a food friend gave me a great review of my recipe! So that reminded me to post that recipe here for you! Thank you Laura O'Brien!

I've tried soooo many beef stew recipes! And they were all very good but were always missing something. So I decided to take the best parts of all the recipes I've tried and I came up with the 'Ultimate Beef Stew' ...

Ultimate Beef Stew
Ultimate Beef Stew

INGREDIENTS;
2 tablespoons corn oil
1 very large white or yellow onion, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped 
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds stew beef, cut into bite sized pieces
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup of Guinness Extra Stout beer (must be extra stout for more flavor) 
1 1/2 cups beef broth
3 tablespoons honey 
1 bay leaf
 
DIRECTIONS;
 1. Heat oil in a large saucepan on medium heat. Saute all the veggies until the onions are tender, stirring constantly.
2. Combine flour, salt, and pepper.  Dredge the meat pieces in the seasoned flour until well coated. Add to the sauteed veggies and continue to cook until the meat is browned. Add salt and pepper to taste (I use 2 teaspoons kosher salt and 1 teaspoon pepper).
3. Add the Guinness stout, beef broth, honey and bay leaf. Stir well.
4. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for about 2 hours or until meat  is tender.
I like to serve this with crusty homemade bread or with mashed potatoes on top.
by LauraOB     Jan 27, 2012
Loved it! My husband called it "the beefiest" beef stew I have made yet.  He is not a honey fan but subbing 2 Tablespoons Agave works perfectly.  I also threw in some potato flakes to thicken it, per the hubs request.  It didn't change the taste, it just thickened it to his preferred consistency.  Great Recipe, Lillian!
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With the beef stew I love to serve this no knead ciabatta bread! I love this bread recipe because its the easiest bread I've ever made! No kneading and hardly any mixing! It rises overnight, then you just dump it onto a baking pan and bake it! You can't get any easier than that!  This bread is nice and crispy on the outside, with a soft airy inside!

EASIEST CIABATTA BREAD
EASIEST CIABATTA BREAD

INGREDIENTS;
1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
2 tsp. kosher salt 
2 cups lukewarm water
4 cups all purpose flour
olive oil - to rub on top of bread before baking 
herbs of your choice to add on top before baking
parchment paper
cornmeal to dust on parchment paper

   DIRECTIONS;
In a large bowl mix yeast and lukewarm water with the salt.
Add flour and stir til flour absorbs all the water. The batter will be very sticky and lumpy, but that's perfect!

Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temp with no drafts. I keep mine in my oven, with the oven light on. Its the perfect place because its warm and draft free.
Let rise for 12 hours.

When ready to bake, cover a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle the paper with a very thin layer of cornmeal. This will keep the bread from sticking.

Take the dough out of the oven, if that's where you put it to rise, and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Now just dump the dough onto the prepared cookie sheet, scraping it out of the bowl with a wooden spoon. Do not punch down the dough. The less you handle the dough the more airy it will be...which is just what you want.

Now gently rub some olive oil over the top and sides of the dough. Then sprinkle with desired seasonings...I used garlic powder and grated parmesan cheese.

Place on middle rack and bake for 25 minutes or til VERY brown, as in my photo. Then remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Then slice and serve warm. I love to serve this with herbed olive oil for dipping or I serve this with stew to soak up the gravy!


2 comments:

  1. Lillian, I love the bread! Saving!
    Peggi

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you so much Peggi! I think you'll be hooked on that one, just like I am! Let me know what you think of it after you make it!

    ReplyDelete

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