In this article you’ll learn about the five main steps involved in making a basic beef stew.
Step 1: Brown the Beef
To brown the beef, heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Make sure it’s hot enough by flicking some water on it. If it sizzles and evaporates quickly, you’re good to go! Add in your oil and sear the meat until browned on all sides, about 3 minutes total. Be careful not to overcrowd the pan or your meat will steam rather than sear. If necessary, work in batches. Remove browned meat from pan and set aside for later use.
Step 2: Choose Your Vegetables
For my stew, I always choose potatoes, carrots, onion and celery. The classic mirepoix combo! Other great options include mushrooms, eggplant or zucchini.
Step 3: Cook Aromatics and Vegetables
Add your onions and celery to the same pot you used for searing the beef and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes. Next add garlic and cook another minute longer. Add chopped vegetables of choice (potatoes, carrots) and saute until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes longer. Season with salt and
If you love a good stew, but find the process of making one too daunting and time consuming, this is the recipe for you. With just 5 simple steps (that can be completed in less than 30 minutes), this beef stew is tasty enough to serve for company, yet easy enough for a weeknight meal.
Step 1: Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add beef and salt; cook until browned on all sides, stirring frequently. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beef to a plate.
Step 2: Reduce heat to medium; add onion and garlic to Dutch oven, and cook until tender. Return beef to Dutch oven; stir in flour until blended.
Step 3: Add wine and broth; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; stir in uncooked noodles, carrots, celery, basil, oregano and pepper flakes. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes or until bubbly and noodles are tender. Before serving, remove bay leaf. Sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan cheese if desired.
To make Beef Stew, you’ll need the following ingredients:
1. 2 cups of cut up beef (any cut)
2. 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
3. 1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
4. 3 Tbsp. oil
5. 1 large potato, peeled and chopped
6. 1 can (10 oz.) stewed tomatoes or one cup fresh tomatoes
7. 2 stalks celery, trimmed and thinly sliced
8. 1/2 cup carrots, peeled and sliced (optional)
9. 1 tsp. salt or more to taste
10. 1/4 tsp. pepper or more to taste
11. 3-4 cups water
Step 1: Prep the Ingredients
Peel and cut the potato, carrot, and parsnip into bite sized pieces. Cut the celery stalk into 2 inch pieces and then thinly slice them. Remove any excess fat from the stew meat and then cut it into bite sized pieces.
Step 2: Brown the Beef
Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Once hot, add in 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add half of the beef to the pot and cook until browned, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside. Add in another tablespoon of olive oil, followed by remaining beef, cooking until browned on all sides, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside with first batch of beef.
Step 3: Cook the Vegetables
Add in 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pot (if needed). Add in the carrots, celery, potatoes, parsnip and onion along with half of thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 4-5 minutes.
Step 4: Simmer Stew
Return beef to pot along with any accumulated juices from plate. Season with salt pepper to taste (being generous with salt) and sprinkle flour over top (stirring
Step 1: Get the Right Ingredients
There is no one recipe for beef stew. There are hundreds of variations, each calling for a different assortment of vegetables, seasonings and cooking methods. The only essential ingredients are meat and liquid. A good place to start is with a basic recipe, such as the one below, then experiment by trying different combinations of vegetables or seasonings.
Step 2: Choose Good Meat
The best cuts of beef for stewing are tough, inexpensive cuts from the shoulder or leg that contain a lot of connective tissue. While all these cuts will be called “stewing beef” at the supermarket, there are some names you might find at the butcher shop that are worth looking for. These include chuck-eye roast (a boneless chuck roast), chuck-eye steak (from the same cut of meat as the roast), top blade steak (also known as flatiron steak) and 7-bone steak (named for the shape of its bone). If you use leaner cuts like sirloin or tenderloin, you’ll need to add more oil when browning the meat to prevent it from drying out during cooking.
Step 3: Brown Your Meat
Most recipes call for browning your meat before adding it to your stew
This is Beef Stew 101, so if you’re looking for a more complicated recipe, this one’s not for you. Just because this is a basic recipe, though, it doesn’t mean that it’s not full of flavor. It’s a classic for a reason and perfect for when you want something hearty and delicious without much fuss.
The bold flavors in this stew will please the whole family. The red wine and beef broth create the liquid base for the stew. A traditional bouquet garni made with parsley, thyme, and bay leaf flavors the stew as it cooks. The addition of dried mushrooms towards the end of cooking infuse the stew with even more flavor.
This is a great dish to make on a weeknight when you need to get dinner on the table quickly. All you have to do is season your beef cubes and brown them in olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, add some aromatics (like onions and garlic), deglaze the pan with wine, stir in broth and seasonings, then let everything simmer until the meat is tender. Garnish with fresh herbs if you like, then serve alongside some crusty bread or boiled potatoes and enjoy!
1. Heat a pot over medium-high heat and add the olive oil.
2. Add the onion and saute until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the beef and brown on all sides.
4. Add the carrots, potatoes, celery, garlic, bay leaves, beef stock and red wine, if using. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes or until meat is very tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Remove from the heat and discard bay leaves before serving
