Beef Stew

This recipe for Oven Beef Stew is adapted from one shared with readers in a recent Penzey's catalogue.

The key to this adaptation is to find a very tender cut of beef. The original recipe has this cook for 5 hours...I cooked it for an hour. Long enough to make most beef pretty tough and chewy. But having a tender cut that slow cooks, for only an hour, in a wet environment, is key.

That being said...I didn't read what type of beef this was and was surprised how tender it was after an hour of cooking! Trial and error my friends. Sorry.

Oven Beef Stew
adapted from Penzey's

1 1/2 lb beef, cubed and trimmed.
2-3 large potatoes, peeled, cubed
1 onion, large diced
4-5 carrots, peeled and cubed
1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained
Salt/Pepper
2 tsp Oregano, dried
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 TB vegetable oil
Broth-chicken or beef or combo

Preheat oven to 350.

Coat the beef with the vegetable oil and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

Sear the beef in a large pot, over medium high heat. You are trying to get a browned crust, not cook the meat through. Remove the beef to a bowl.

Add the onions to the pot and stir. Add the oregano. Stir. Add the tomatoes. Cover with broth and add the beef. Stir. Cover and place in the oven for 1/2 hour.

At the 1/2 hour mark, stir and add the potatoes and carrots. Cover and cook for another 1/2 hour, or until the vegetables are tender.

Serve hot!


Notes: If you want the broth to be thicker, you can stir in a cornstarch slurry (equal parts cornstarch and cold liquid) to thicken it, or bring to a simmer over the stove, uncovered to allow the broth to reduce.