Cozy beef stew pairs well with rice or noodles
KITCHEN SCOOP By Alicia Ross
I once had a cooking teacher tell me she never cooks with a wine she won’t drink. You can’t get better advice. It stands to reason that if you enjoy the flavour of a wine straight out of the glass, you will really enjoy the intensified flavour in your dish.
Today’s recipe for Beef and Mushroom Stew relies on the cookeddown intensity of a good quality wine. I prefer a blend (or table wine) for cooking. Good quality doesn’t have to mean expensive. You can find fine red blends for less than $10. If you prefer no wine in your stew, you can substitute beef broth. But the wine’s layers of dark fruit and earthy finishes shine with the homey ingredients.
I really love brown rice with this stew. But I’ve served it over egg noodles, white rice, orzo and even risotto. It’s nice to serve leftovers over a different base and have a whole new experience. Let your imagination soar.
Leftovers may be refrigerated for up to three days, or frozen (if the meat was fresh) for up to three months. Defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours and eat within a day of fully thawing. Enjoy!
Suggested menu:
Beef and Mushroom Stew Brown rice
Crisp romaine vinaigrette leaves
Beef and Mushroom Stew
with
Start to finish: 3 hours, mostly simmering time, or 6 to 8 hours in the slow cooker
Yield: 6 servings
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound extra-lean stew meat or sirloin beef tips
8 to 10 ounces baby portabella mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon dried basil
2 cans (14 ounces each) no-saltadded diced tomatoes
1 cup good quality red wine (not cooking wine)
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water, if desired Brown rice, jasmine rice, orzo or egg noodles for serving, if desired Chopped Italian parsley, optional garnish
In a heavy-bottom stew pot, heat the oil on medium-high until shimmering. Add the beef, mushrooms and onions; stir and cook until beef is almost all browned. Add the basil, canned tomatoes with the juice and the red wine; stir well. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, or until beef is fall-apart tender. (Or, instead of this method, carefully transfer the stew to your slow cooker and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.) Check periodically and add water if stew becomes too dry.
In the last 30 minutes of cooking (for either method), check to see if the gravy is to your preference.
If you want a thicker gravy, stir in the cornstarch and water mixture and continue to simmer until thickened. Serve over your choice of starch, if desired.
Approximate values per serving (excluding cornstarch and choice of serving starch): 241 calories, 7 g fat (2 g saturated), 68 mg cholesterol, 25 g protein, 10 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, 77 mg sodium.
Alicia Ross is the co-author of “Desperation Dinners!” (Workman, 1997), “Desperation Entertaining!” (Workman, 2002) and “Cheap. Fast. Good!” (Workman, 2006).