Basic Beef Stew--An Easy Meal

I don’t buy beef very often, but when I spotted a package of well-trimmed beef stewing meat at the grocery store I snapped it up.  I immediately thought of making Beef Bourguignon but then remembered that our dinner guests don’t like mushrooms.

I decided to take this opportunity to make a basic beef stew.
  I found a suitable recipe in “The Silver Spoon.”  It looked simple enough.  In fact, it looked too simple.  It didn’t include any spice, apart from black pepper.  The directions said to let it simmer for just 1 hour.  That seemed wrong.  Beef Bourguignon takes 2 ½ - 3 hours to cook.

I used the recipe as a template and added what I wanted, including an hour’s extra cooking time.  .  When the stew was nearly done, I tasted it and was surprised how bland it was.  So I stirred in 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard into the stew’s gravy.  Big improvement.

Mom’s Basic Beef Stew – serves 4 

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup baby carrots or thinly sliced whole carrots
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 medium potato, cut in 1/2-inch chunks
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 1/2 pounds lean stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 medium tomatoes, peeled and diced or 1 cup canned tomatoes
2/3 cup water + more if needed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 

Begin heating the oil and butter in a medium pan over medium heat.  When the butter has melted, add the carrots, celery, potato and onion and stir occasionally for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables have softened. 

Add the beef and cook, stirring often, until it has browned on all sides.  Add the wine and continue cooking for about 5 minutes, or until it has mostly evaporated. 

While the meat is cooking, put the tomatoes in a food processor and process until the mixture is smooth.  Add the tomatoes and the 2/3 cup water to the stewing pan.  Add the salt and black pepper, stir thoroughly and reduce the heat to low.  

Cover and simmer for about 2- 2 1/2 hours, or until the meat is soft.  Check occasionally to make sure all the liquid hasn’t evaporated.  Add more water as necessary, but don’t drown the meat. When the meat is soft, stir in the mustard.  Serve immediately or let cool and refrigerate until needed.

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