The beef stew recipe that makes my family think that I’ve been lying about not being able to cook

This post has been sponsored by Perdue Farms. All opinions are strictly our own.

All you need is some nice crusty French bread to make this perfect

Maybe I sell myself too short when it comes to my cooking skills

I think that a big part of it is that I married a chef and when I attempt to compare myself to someone who can make magic happen by rummaging through the spice cabinet and just seeing what we’ve got left in the freezer from this month’s Perdue Farms delivery, I get intimidated. But, I do have some tried and true meals that I make that my family loves. In fact, when Ben was young, he’d rather have mom’s Beef Stew over dad’s fancy Beef Wellington. 

The key to cooking when you’re not very creative

Is to keep it simple. You can add your own flair to this recipe. I usually pour myself some wine and pour some in the stew as well for depth, but you can certainly just keep it as simple as this.

Zippy’s Simple Beef Stew

My secret? Using a great organic grass-fed beef like Panorama

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Panorama Organic Grass-Fed Beef Stew Meat
• Vegetable oil to coat pan
• 1/3 cup of flour
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup chopped cooking onions
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 clove garlic OR a squirt of garlic paste (I use garlic paste)
• 2 cups of hot water OR beef stock
• 1 cup canned tomatoes (I have been known to substitute anything from tomato paste to ketchup)
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 4 stalks of celery sliced
• 2 small cooking onions – chop 1/2 of one, and quarter the remainder
• 6 medium carrots cut into 2″ lengths
• 4 medium quartered potatoes
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 1/2 cup frozen peas

I prefer using a Cocotte or Dutch Oven, but a slow cooker or large pot works as well

Recipe

1. Dredge the Panorama Organic Grass-Fed Beef Stew Meat in flour
2. Add oil to the pan (I use a cast-iron cocotte)
3. Slowly brown the meat on all sides
4. Add salt, pepper, chopped onions, bay leaf, and garlic
5. Slowly stir in the hot water or beef stock and tomatoes
6. Add the Worcestershire sauce.
7. Cover and simmer for about 2 hours until the meat is fork-tender
8. Add celery, carrots, and quartered onions and potatoes
9. Add salt & pepper to taste
10. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes
11. Optional: pour in some of that red wine you’ve been drinking as you cook
12. Serve in bowls with fresh crusty bread to dunk!!

Happy FALL cooking!

• Get 15% off at Perdue Farms when you use this link: perduefarms.com/champagneliving