Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots - Hearty. Simple. Flavorful. Basic cooking doesn't have to equate to boring or tasteless. This classic Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots testifies strongly to that theory. Downright delicious. That's how I describe this stew recipe.
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Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots
By definition, braising is a combination method of cooking meat that uses both dry and moist heat. French in origin, the technique typically involves searing a meat first, and then finishing it off at a lower temperature, covered and in the oven.
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That's pretty much exactly how we made this Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots Recipe.
If you want to know more about braising, and really just how simple it is, Bon Appétit does a great job of summarizing the process here.
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I found this Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots Recipe on Epicurious, one of my go-to recipe sites. I've had a tasty relationship with this site for years. One of the things that I love about Epicurious are the reviews, tips and tweaks provided by other readers.
One of the handy tips I procured from this feature was to not discard the mirepoix after braising in the oven. Instead, I fished them out of the mix, dropped them in the food processor for a short spin and then returned them to the stew.
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Toward the end of of making this Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots Recipe, add the chunks of potatoes and carrots.
This prevents them from being over cooked and mushy and allows them to maintain their character and taste while adding a bit of crunch and texture to the stew. This recipe is perfect for a Saturday or Sunday, or a day when you are able to hang out in your kitchen and braise.
It may just become one of my favorite past times! I hope you give this one a try. Don't expect there to be many leftovers, but if there are, expect them to taste even better the next day.
That's one of the benefits of braising. The many compliments you receive from serving this dish are certain to be some of the others (benefits.) Enjoy! -Dan
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Braised Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots
Ingredients
for the braised beef
- 3 pounds boneless beef chuck not lean, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 carrots quartered
- 3 celery ribs quartered
- 2 medium onions peeled and quartered
- 1 head garlic peeled
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 750-ml bottle dry red wine (about 3 ¾ cups)
- 2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
- 2 thyme sprigs
- 3 cups reduced-sodium beef broth
- 3 cups water
for potatoes and carrots to be added toward the end
- 2 ½ pounds small white boiling potatoes
- 1 ½ pounds carrots
Instructions
for braising the beef
- Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
- Pat beef dry and season with 2 ½ teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
- Heat oil in pot over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then brown meat, without crowding, in 3 batches, turning, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer to a platter.
- Reduce heat to medium, then add carrots, celery, onions, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, about 12 minutes.
- Push vegetables to one side of pot. Add tomato paste to cleared area and cook paste, stirring, 2 minutes, then stir into vegetables.
- Add vinegar and cook, stirring, 2 minutes.
- Stir in wine, bay leaves, and thyme and boil until wine is reduced by about two thirds, 10 to 12 minutes.
- Add broth to pot along with water, beef, and any juices from platter and bring to a simmer. Cover and braise in oven until meat is very tender, about 2 ½ hours.
- Remove from oven, use slotted spoon to take out mirepoix of carrots, celery, onion and garlic. Place mirepox in food processor to purée then return contents to stew.
cook potatoes and carrots
- While beef braises, peel potatoes and cut into ½-inch-wide wedges. Slice carrots diagonally (1-inch).
- Add potatoes and carrots to stew after adding puréd mirepox (make sure they are submerged) and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until potatoes and carrots are tender, about 40 minutes.
Sharon
Mmmm what a comforting stew! I am all about stews and soups this time of year. It's just what I need to keep warm. Thanks for sharing!