2 pounds stew beef, finely chopped
3 T all purpose flour
2 T cooking oil
1 package stew seasoning, recommended McCormick
1~12oz bottle beer, recommended Guinness
1~15oz can diced tomatoes
2 c baby carrots, cut in quarters
3 c fresh green beans, cut in 2" sections
3 pounds russet potatoes
1/2 c milk
1/2 c heavy cream
1 T butter
Mushroom gravy*, recipe to follow
Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Dredge beef in flour and fry until well browned on all sides. Add beer and stew seasoning, bring to boil and lower heat to medium. Add tomato, carrots and green beans. Cover loosely and cook a minimum of 90 minutes to 2 hours.
While beef and vegetables cook, peel and dice potatoes and add to large pot of cold water, heavily salted. Cover and bring to boil. Cook until potatoes are fork tender, drain. Add milk and cream; coarsely mash potatoes.
After beef cooking time is complete, place beef and vegetables in 9x11 casserole dish and cover top with mashed potatoes. Dot with butter and broil until potatoes are lightly browned. Serve with mushroom gravy. Serves 8.
Mushroom Gravy
1 package brown gravy mix, recommended Lawry's
4 oz baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
1/4 c dry red wine
1 c water
2 T butter
Melt butter in large saute pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add wine and cook one minute; add water and gravy packet; cook, over medium low heat until thickened. Yield 2 cups.
Chef's Note: I know, stewed beef and fresh green beans are not "traditional", but I just can't stomach boiled ground meat and frozen peas. Yuck. Since it's MY recipe I can cook what I like to eat... steak and fresh veggies with an incredibly rich gravy. Now THAT'S good cookin'.
I have a dumb question... When it comes to the beer and the wine... is there an acceptable substitution? Or are they so integral to the receipe that you just shouldn't even bother, if you can't make it the way it's written? And just find a different receipe that doesn't call for it. May seem like a silly question, but inquiring minds want to know. :P
ReplyDeleteNot a dumb question, it is quite valid and I'll do my best to adequately explain.
ReplyDeleteA recipe that calls for beer or wine does so because of the particular flavor each specifically brings to a dish. If you are avoiding alcohol but want to retain the flavor, you could use non-alcoholic beer or wine to achieve a similar taste. If the flavor is what you are trying to avoid, I would recommend finding another similar recipe. You can not just omit them altogether because the liquid measurement is part of making the recipe work.
In turn, you can not just substitute water for alcohol, as alcohol reacts differently with other ingredients and it doesn't "cook" the same way water does (different boiling temperature, chemical structure, acid level, etc).
Here's a link to a site if you would like to hang on to it for future reference: Alcohol Substitution in Cooking