One of my favorite internet surfing activities includes scouring the myriad of food blogs out there and swooning over unique mouth watering recipes. More often than not though, in my own kitchen I lean towards tried and true classics. There's something comforting about combining a few simple ingredients and transforming it into a sacred dish full of love. Recently I've noticed these classics haven't been taken seriously, I see recipes boldly adding ingredients or making it so simple the directions could lead one down a path to disaster. Channeling my great grandma or really the very distant memories I have of her cooking while I sat on a pull out stool chair as she danced around the kitchen weaving magic over pots of heavenly smelling goodness, I worked up this stew.
Now here's the thing, the most important part of a 5 ingredient dish is the quality of the ingredients. If each ingredient brings the top of their game then the dish will surely be a winner. The second most important part of this process is, well, the process- how things are cut, prepared and little extra steps here and there that seem like no big deal to skip-don't skip them! When done correctly these "extra" steps really bring the dish together.
So the bad news is- for this recipe you can't just throw everything in a crock pot and walk away-it does take a little time.
The good news-it's delicious and easily doubled to save for a lunch later in the week or freeze for another dinner.
Ok so technically there's a little more than 5 ingredents but there are 5 main ones
1 lb organic grass fed stew beef -if this absolutely is not available, look for a beef that's hormone free and grass fed if possible but I promise you for just a couple dollars more you're not just getting the best tasting beef, you are also voting with your dollars supporting the ethical treatment of cows and most likely supporting a small/local farmer.
3-4 small organic potatoes- I like North Carolina gold, but that's partly because I can get them from a farmer about an hour from my house. Yukon gold or scrubbed russet potatoes work well too.
1 bunch of organic carrots (about 9) please don't use baby carrots- I know they are super convenient but they're also processed and contain small amounts of chlorine-just say no! chop into bite sized chunky pieces.
1 stalk organic celery and 1/2 an onion chopped
4 Cups Organic beef broth
For the beef- stew meat usually comes in big chunks take each piece and look for the long running fibers, the the meat into bite sized pieces cutting against the grain. Cutting it this way reduces the amount of chewiness.
Next brown the beef on medium heat by itself. While the beef is browning over medium heat put on some water to boil in a pan or tea pot and cut the potatoes into small pieces and place in a glass or stainless steel bowl.
As the beef browns gently pour out the "juice" don't worry about flavor it will make more juice but I've noticed skimming the first bit off drastically reduces any "gamey" flavor of the beef.
After drained add the onion by now the water should be boiling , add the boiling water to the potatoes for 2 minutes, then drain. The potatoes will add starch to the stew but "pre-cooking" them reduces the amount of starch so there's a little liquid left and the stew will be more like gravy and less like delicious mush.
Once the beef and onions are almost cooked add a couple tablespoons of butter, the carrots, celery and potatoes and add
1-2 tsp (I just go by "shakes") of the following
oregano
thyme
parsley
basil
red pepper flakes
then add
a couple tablespoons of worstershire sauce
a splash of braggs
and a couple cloves of crushed garlic
1-2 bay leaves
Cook until veggies start to soften throw in about a tablespoon of flour and stir until everything looks kind of gooey, then stir in the beef broth and bring to a boil. Let boil about 5 minutes or so reduce the heat to low and stick a lid on that bad boy. Let simmer for a couple of hours (at least an hour) then relish in the delight of a classic!
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