Winter is always a little bit depressing without any sunshine and constant grey skies and snow storms every other day in New York City. But there’s something cozy about it too, when I’m pent up in my apartment with not much to do other than cook, watch a good movie and snuggle under a blanket with my heater on. For my birthday last November my Mom got me a gorgeous Wolfgang Puck cast iron ceramic enamel braising pan which I’ve been dying to make a big pot of delicious comforting something or other in. I’ve had a craving for a warm and homey stew and had some Williams-Sonoma Beef Stew Braising Sauce on hand, so it was the perfect excuse to get cooking and cure the winter chills outside.
I rounded up some beef chuck, carrots, potatoes, chopped tomatoes, onions and baby peas and threw it all in the big pot. I added a dark Irish stout beer (Guinness is the best!) and beef broth to give it a hearty savory flavor along with the stew starter which has a nice balance of spices in it like cumin, curry and paprika, dark beer, fire-roasted red peppers, chiles and tomatoes for a little extra kick. After a few hours in the oven it’s just a big pot of yum. Kinda like a big hug. Now that’s worth staying in for.
Cut the beef into 1-inch cubes, dredge with seasoned pan-searing flour and brown in 2 tablespoons of canola oil over medium high heat for about 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove beef from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add onions to the pan along with another 2 tablespoons of canola oil and saute for about 5 minutes until tender. Add the 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and saute another minute.
Add Worchestershire sauce and beer and cook with onions for a few minutes, stirring and scraping pan to loosen the brown bits. Add the beef broth and cook for another few minutes.
Return the seared beef to the pot, add the chopped tomatoes, carrots, potatoes and Beef Stew starter and salt and pepper to taste, and bring to a boil.
Cover and throw the pot into a preheated 350 degree oven and let the goods simmer for about an hour. Remove from oven, stir and reduce heat to 300 degrees. At this point, if the stew is not thick enough for your liking, add a slurry of starch or roux thickener mixed with some water (about 1/4 cup) into the stew and stir well throughout. You can also smash a few of the potatoes to thicken it up a little bit. Place pot back in the oven braise for another 30 minutes to an hour. Defrost the baby peas and add into the pot the last 5 minutes or so.
Let the stew cool on top of the stove uncovered for about 15-20 minutes to let it thicken. Serve with rye bread or Irish Brown Bread and a glass of Guinness or dark beer of your choice.
A Big Bowl of Comfort :: Irish Stout Beef Stew
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours, 45 minutes
Yield: 8
Serving Size: 1 cup
1 cup seasoned pan-searing flour (Wegmans or Wondra)
4 tablespoons canola oil, divided
2 pounds boneless chuck beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 ½ large onions, sliced
2 tablespoons minced garlic (3 or 4 cloves)
1 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
1 bottle Irish stout beer (like Guinness)
1 8.5 ounce jar Williams-Sonoma Beef Stew Braising Sauce
1 14-ounce can low-sodium beef broth
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped fine in a food processor
2 cups baby carrots or large carrot chunks
6 Yukon Gold potatoes, quartered into chunks
1 package frozen baby peas
¼ cup starch or roux thickener and water slurry (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
Rye or Brown Bread for serving
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and heat 2 tablespoons of canola oil over medium-high heat in a large cast iron enamel braising pan or Dutch oven.
Cut the beef into 1-inch cubes, dredge with seasoned pan-searing flour and brown in 2 tablespoons of canola oil over medium high heat for about 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove beef from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add sliced onions to the pan along with another 2 tablespoons of canola oil and saute for about 5 minutes until tender. Add the 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and saute another minute.
Add Worchestershire sauce and beer and cook with onions for a few minutes, stirring and scraping pan to loosen the brown bits. Add the beef broth and cook for another few minutes.
Return the seared beef to the pot, add the chopped tomatoes, baby carrots, potatoes and Beef Stew Braising Sauce, salt and pepper to taste, and bring to a boil.
Cover and place the pot into the oven and let the goods simmer for about an hour. Remove from oven, stir and reduce heat to 300 degrees. At this point, if the stew is not thick enough for your liking, add a slurry of cornstarch, flour or roux thickener mixed with some water (about 1/4 cup) into the stew and stir well throughout until desired thickness (keep in mind it will also thicken as the stew sits awhile and cools). You can also smash a few of the potatoes to thicken it up a little bit.
Place pot back in the oven braise for another 30 minutes to an hour. Defrost the baby peas and add into the pot the last 5 minutes or so.
Let the stew cool on top of the stove uncovered for about 15-20 minutes to let it thicken. Serve with rye bread or Irish Brown Bread and Irish grassfed butter (Kerrygold is my fav!!) a glass of Guinness or dark beer of your choice.
Cozy Up.
Other Beef Stew recipes you might enjoy:
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