Red Wine-Braised Beef Stew
Adapted from this Food & Wine recipe.
- 2 lbs lean beef chuck, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Sea salt
- Pepper
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 bottle red wine (any dry red will do, I used Pinot Noir)
- 2 bay leaves (I left this out and it was still yummy)
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 15 cremini mushrooms, larger ones cut in half (you want all pieces to be roughly the same size)
- 4 carrots, cut into pieces that are roughly the same size as the mushrooms and onions
- 5-ounce piece of pancetta (or you can sub bacon), cut into ½ inch dice
- ½ cup water
- Dash of sugar
- Chopped fresh chives
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large, oven-safe pot. Add the beef in a single layer, season with salt and pepper. Cook over high heat for about 8 minutes, browning the meat on all sides.
Add one cup of finely chopped onion and one tablespoon of finely chopped garlic. Cook over moderate heat for an additional five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add one tablespoon of flour. Mix in well so that the flour doesn’t form lumps. Stir in one bottle of red wine. Add the bay leaves and thyme, bring to a boil and cover. Stir well and place the pot in the oven for 1 ½ - 2 hours. The meat should become tender, and the sauce will reduce. The recipe can be prepared up to this point a day ahead.
For the garnishes, add the pancetta to a skillet and cook over medium heat until it has browned and rendered its fat, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, carrots, and mushrooms, along with ½ cup of water and a generous dash of sugar, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes; at this point there should be practically no water left. Uncover and cook over high heat until nicely browned on all sides, about four minutes.
To serve, mix in some of the vegetables to the stew. Sprinkle the rest as a garnish along with the chopped chives.
