Beef Stew


sorabji.com: What are you eating?: Beef Stew
THIS IS A READ-ONLY ARCHIVE FROM THE SORABJI.COM MESSAGE BOARDS (1995-2016).

By Spider on Wednesday, March 7, 2007 - 09:40 pm:

    This is how I do it:


    1.5 pounds cubed beef
    olive oil
    3-4 cloves garlic

    Brown the meat in the olive oil in a big pot, and when it's
    brown all over, throw in the garlic and let it sizzle for
    a minute or two.

    4-5 cups beef stock (you can use bouillon cubes if you want,
    any flavor except fish)
    1 cup of red wine
    1 cup of beer**
    2 T tomato paste
    1 T steak sauce (seriously)
    1 T worcestershire sauce
    1 T sugar
    1 T parsley
    1 T thyme
    2 tsp marjoram
    2 bay leaves
    salt
    pepper

    **beer should be of some thick variety, like Guinness,
    stout, porter, etc. I've been using this Sierra Leone porter
    from Trader Joe's -- it tastes rather like coffee, which adds
    a nice bitterness.

    After garlic has been sizzling, throw all of the above
    ingredients into the pot with the beef. Bring to a boil and
    then lower heat to a simmer.

    While all that's cooking cut up the following and cook in a
    separate pan:

    1 onion
    a bunch of carrots
    new potatoes (or a bag of those red, white, and blue potatoes
    Trader Joe's)
    butter to coat

    Cook that for about 20 minutes. Then throw those things
    into the stew pot with the beef, and cook for about ~40
    minutes or until beef and potatoes are done.

    Eat and kiss yourself.


By Spider on Wednesday, March 7, 2007 - 09:42 pm:

    You can add pasta to this if you want, just get rid of the
    potatoes (or if you're like my mother and want both, just
    reduce the number of potatoes and cut very small).

    I also made this once with parsnips instead of potatoes. I
    don't recommend doing that.


By droopy on Thursday, March 8, 2007 - 02:17 am:

    i have an irish stew recipe similar to this (with guinness) that i make every year for st. patrick's day. nothing like fortifying yourself with stew before a night of the old sodom and begorrah.


    ernest gallo is dead.

    what's the word?
    thunderbird!
    how's it sold?
    good and cold!
    what's the jive?
    bird's alive!
    what's the price?
    thirty twice!


By Spider on Thursday, March 8, 2007 - 02:48 am:

    I know: I used to make that stew. :) It's dang good, too,
    but I left the recipe at my dad's house and had to improvise.


By eri on Thursday, March 8, 2007 - 04:51 pm:

    I have been doing a lot of Irish and Greek cooking lately. Irish stew a lot.

    We always used to do Corned Beef and Cabbage for St. Patty's Day, but this year I'm doing Beef with Guiness. I'd post the recipe, but well, I have a LOT of work to do right now.

    Tonight I'm making Kota Rigonata for dinner. Yum.


By Dr Pepper on Saturday, March 10, 2007 - 01:48 pm:

    St patty's Day? Huh? well you should go to Chicago for St patrick's day. lotta of Irish People.


By droopy on Saturday, March 10, 2007 - 09:42 pm:

    i am irish people. it never made st. patty's day more fun.


By eri on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 03:20 pm:

    I am Irish people, too. There are lots of Irish people out here, no need to travel the country to look for a good party.

    Besides, I'm staying very close to home for a while.


By Dr Pepper on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 06:56 pm:

    mmph, I am not a Irish, but, my ex wife is.


By moonit on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 08:24 pm:

    How come (and no offense guys, but this is something I find really wierd about your culture) American's insist on naming their heritage... as in I'm Irish (even though it was my great great great great great great grandfather who imigrated here in 1546, but married a Mexican chick and the offspring married another culture and so on and so on...) but you're still IRISH? Why is that?

    Why can't you just be americans?

    I'm just a kiwi. In fact when they ask for race on stupid forms, I tick other and write New Zealander. I'm not NZ European. I'M A KIWI.


By droopy on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 09:19 pm:

    my great-grandparents came from ireland around the turn of the 20th century. the trunk they carried all their belongings in sits in my living room as a coffee table. my father was the first one on his side of the family who married someone who wasn't of irish heritage. and that's only because he knocked her up. with me.

    a lot of immigrant groups who came to america - like the irish - weren't exactly welcome, and used their identity as irish-american for solidarity. same with italians, chinese, etc.

    in texas (where i life now) there are towns founded by germans, czechs, and mexicans that retain vestiges of their heritage. texas would be a much worse place without 'em.

    my grandparents never actually mentioned ireland or seemed to have any interest in the "old country." but my grandmother would sing irish songs and my grandfather was a member of the royal order of the hibernians - basically just a lodge where they could go to get away from their wives and drink.

    we celebrated st. patrick's day not as drunken debacle but like an irish-american thanksgiving.


    i'm american; i admit it's mostly meaningless to call myself anything else. but it's fun, and americans like a bit of fun.

    what's the big deal?


By Spider on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 11:42 pm:

    I identify as Italian because my father was born and raised
    in Italy.

    [My dad's an atypical Italian, though, very stoic (and Stoic)
    and quiet.]


By moonit on Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 11:49 pm:

    No big deal, I just think its weird and I always wanted to know why.

    I can understand it now because of the sheer numbers of imigrants the USA would of had - so that acutally makes sense - whereas before I never would of thought of it like that - our history lessons were focused on the UK/World Wars/Maori-NZ - not the USA - except in reference to when they saved our asses in the War. Plus we never really had a lot of immigration - some chinese in the gold rush days - but thats about it. I think it started getting more popular in the 70s, especially with the Pacific Island cultures - and now of course

    Spidy, I think you're okay - its the many greats that I think is weird ;) I would never identify myself as Cornish or English because thats where my great great great great grandparents came from.


By droopy on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 12:45 am:

    but if i didn't identify myself as irish, i wouldn't be able to wear the "kiss me i'm irish" button every st. patrick's day.


By moonit on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 01:50 am:

    If I had a button like that I would just wear it every day. St Patricks day is a big day here too. I used to work with an Irish chick who would drag the whole sales team out drinking with her and then up dancing.

    This St Patricks day, Andrew flies to Japan. I am going to get my hair done and watch bad movies and have a couple of quiets. I can't deal with bars and clubs, and 18 year old drunk chicks anymore. I'm old OLD. How did this happen to me?


By J on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 02:44 am:

    Grasshopper(Moonit)...Let's all get up and dance to a song
    that was a hit before your mother was born
    Though she was born a long, long time ago
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know

    Sing it again
    Let's all get up and dance to a song
    that was a hit before your mother was born
    Though she was born a long, long time ago
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know

    Lift up your hearts and sing me a song
    that was a hit before your mother was born
    Though she was born a long, long time ago
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know

    Da da da da da da da da da
    da da da da da da da da da da da
    Though she was born a long, long time ago
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know
    Your mother should know


    Your just a baby,old,I'm old,what's my secret? Oil of old age,hehe.


By semillama on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 05:22 pm:

    Part of the American myth (myth as in legend, not necessarily as in "untrue") is that the Irish immigrants had a lot to do with the development of the American character. Irish were especially important in the development of unions (Mother Jones was an Irishwoman). Irish involvement in politics was also important: The Know-Nothing Party in the 1850s was formed to oppose Irish Catholics in government. And Irish formed a major component of many metropolitan police departments as well.

    If you want to make fun of Americans with Irish heritage calling themselves Irish-Americans, call them "Plastic Paddies". I was definitely a Plastic Paddy for a while until I came to my senses.

    American culture is also still very young and dynamic, so I think many Americans feel a sense of not belonging or being "heritage deficient". I hope that what may happen is that celebrations of all cultures that are contributing to America will become part of the yearly routine for Americans, not just St. Patrick's Day.

    In related news, the goddamned POGUES with SHANE MCGOWAN are playing a US TOUR RIGHT NOW. There are still tickets available for the March 14 and 15 dates. Everything else is and has been sold out.

    I wish I had known.


By drooopy on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 06:36 pm:

    where i grew up in rhode island "being irish" was so entrenched that it was hard not to develop the habit. my mother even refers to my dad's side of the family as "the irish". then my parents divorced and my mom dragged me to texas with my thick rhode island accent right when i was hitting puberty and at my most insecure. one day i told someone i had lived in ireland once and he thought it was cool, so i stuck with the story.

    as an adult i went to a local bar owned by an actual ireland. he thought american fake irishness was silly, but he liked they way it helped his business around march.


By droopy on Monday, March 12, 2007 - 08:42 pm:

    by the way, i think cinco de mayo will one day take the place of st. patrick's day.

    though it'll be hard for me to fake being mexican.

    besame, soy mexicano.


By V on Tuesday, March 13, 2007 - 04:01 pm:

    :-)


By Spider on Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - 01:33 pm:

    The recipe above needs some tweaking.

    Use:

    * a whole (12 oz) bottle of beer
    * 4 cups of water
    * 5 of those little packets of reduced beef stock from Trader Joe's
    * one TBS more of everything except the sugar

    * add the garlic after the beef has been browning for a few minutes
    * cook for at least 1 hr., 40 min. (not 40 min. as stated above), but keep the vegetables separate from the meat until the very end.
    * if you need more liquid, add more wine


    This is so ridiculously good, oh my God. Vegetarians will lose their morals just at the scent.


By Karla on Monday, December 1, 2008 - 04:30 pm:

    Spider, I made your stew Sun. night. Excellent flavor, but it didn't thicken. Should there be cornstarch or something like that in it?


By Spider on Monday, December 1, 2008 - 08:13 pm:

    Oh, wow, I'm glad you liked it. :)

    What I do (usually out of neglect and distraction, to be honest) is simmer it uncovered for much longer than directed (like, say, 2 1/2 hours). Most of the moisture ends up boiling off. If you want to add cornstarch next time, that should work just fine.


By droopy on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 06:50 pm:

    i think i have probably just created a disaster. it's an "irish stew" recipe from a 1963 joy of cooking book. i had stew meat that was going bad and potatoes that were turning spongey, so i had to make something with them. in the recipe, you cut the taters into slices (like you would for a fritatta) and line the bottom of a large pan with them. then you cover that with stew meat, salt and pepper, thyme (which was my idea), and then onions. repeat this process and end with taters on the top. pour boiling water over that, bring it to a boil, then simmer for 2 hours.

    i broke the lid to the pan i would've used for this recipe, so i decided to do it in the slow cooker. the last (and only other) time i made this recipe, i used ground lamb and not cubed stew meat. i wasn't able to get the even layers this time around - the cubed meat terrain being too craggy; and this time i had to use more water, which was probably a bad idea since water doesn't cook away in a slow cooker like it would in a pan on the stove.

    but i've started the process, and i guess i'll just have to trust my luck. i put it on at 4:30pm (it's a little after five right now, my time), and i'll have to wait until 10:30 to see if it's edible.


By heather on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 07:01 pm:

    the cubed meat terrain being too craggy

    *grin*


By jaq on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 09:23 pm:



    yes, very nice phrase!


By droopy on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 10:40 pm:

    left the apartment for a while. when i got back, it smelled really good. still does. adding the thyme was a good idea. so at least there's some hope for it, craggy meat and all.


By semillama on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 10:55 pm:

    If it seems a bit off, add whisket until the problem is irrelevant.


By platypus on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 11:05 pm:

    Crappy meat makes great stew. Glad to hear things are looking up.


By droopy on Monday, May 11, 2009 - 11:08 pm:

    wish i'd had some garlic.

    Urban Dictionary: whisket
    whisket - 1 definition - a slag term for "whisker biscuit" a vagina with two day's worth of pubic hair growing.

    i assume you meant whiskey, semillama.


By droopy on Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - 12:44 am:

    the "stew" had way too much liquid to be what it was meant to be on paper, so i just broke up the potatoes with a spoon and made it into a meat and potato soup. it's actually a bit bland, probably because i used tap water instead of broth. the meat came out well - stew meat can be tough and stringy, but the slow cooking makes it fall apart in your mouth. my evening meal (i always eat a small meal at 10pm) was cheese toast and a spinach & radish green salad. i just had enough of the soup to pronounce it edible and put the whole thing - in the crock pot it was cooked in - in the fridge. it's common knowledge that stew (even if it isn't much of a stew) is always better the next day.


By patrick on Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - 01:14 pm:

    holy shit semillama that was illuminating whether you meant it or not.



By semillama on Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - 09:14 pm:

    oh i meant it, brother!


By sarah on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 - 12:15 am:


    i love beef stew. preferably with barley.

    i was laying on the couch in the middle of the day watching food tv and the dude's show was about dusting off the antique american cook book.

    he made chicken and dumplings, and for dessert an apple brown betty. holy shit it looked yummy, i'm going to try to make that this weekend.




By droopy on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 - 12:30 am:

    i had that beef soup/stew up there for dinner - it was ok once i added a little more salt and a splash of vinegar. i've really got to stop trying to cook.


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