Homemade Beef Stew Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What gives beef stew the best flavor? ›

Add spices such as turmeric, coriander and cumin at the early stage of cooking, when you are frying onions and garlic, to enhance the taste of the beef stew. Fresh herbs like coriander and bay leaves also contribute a distinct flavour without making the dish too spicy for the younger members of the family.

But I believe the secret to the tender beef is… slow roasting the stew in a covered pot in the oven! That's it! No fancy pressure cooker needed!

Whisk a teaspoon of flour in a little cold water to make a slurry, then stir into the stew as it's cooking. Don't add dry flour directly to the stew as it may clump. After adding the slurry, bring the stew to boil. This will cook out the flour taste and allow the starch to swell.

Many stew recipes call for seasoning chunks of meat with salt before searing them or adding them unseared to the pot.

Make sure to come back and stir it every 30 minutes. If the stew is looking too thick, add in more stock. After the stew has been cooking for 2 hours, now add in the carrots and potatoes. Stir them in, then cover and let cook for an addition 45-60 minutes.

Don't Rush the Stewing of the Stew

Your beef stew needs at least two hours, sometimes three, on a low burner, so the meat is tender, and the flavors mingle.

Chuck meat is your best bet for beef stew, but it's also a pretty tough cut so it needs time to break down and become tender. Rush the cooking process and the beef will be tough and chewy. Follow this tip: For really tender meat, cook the stew low and slow, for approximately two hours.

Add the wine and tomato paste to the onions and other aromatics in a pan before slow cooking. Plus, this helps to really deglaze any fond that's left. This ingredient is one that your mum and nan would probably use in their stews. It adds a bit of tang, sweetness and savoury spices that give an extra punch of flavour.

The choice becomes easier when you realize that simple baking soda can be an ideal meat tenderizer that helps to bring out all the aromas and flavors in every sizzling beef stew or charburger.

What vegetables are good for beef stew? ›

Add onion, celery and carrot. Stir frequently, scraping the bottom of the pot until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the seasoning: Add the herbs and chili flakes and stir to combine, cooking for about 1 minute or until fragrant.

Add plain instant mashed potatoes (which are essentially just dehydrated potatoes) to the finished soup recipe as a thickening agent. Simple? Yes.

This gives your stew a creamier body, particular if you're using starchy vegetables like potatoes. Starches are an excellent way to thicken up your stew, as individual starch molecules start to absorb water immediately upon hitting hot liquid, eventually bursting and causing the liquid to thicken.

Cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. When a gravy, sauce, soup or stew recipe calls for flour, use half as much cornstarch to thicken. To thicken hot liquids, first mix cornstarch with a little cold water until smooth. Gradually stir into hot liquid until blended.

What are the essential spices for stew? - Quora. The most common herbs and spices for a traditional beef stew would be thyme, parsley, bay leaves, and black pepper. In some cultures, there are also spices like sweet paprika, oregano, cilantro (coriander), or basil.

Other herbs, spices, and ingredients that complement rosemary and beef are parsley, sage, thyme, onion, garlic, red wine, and carrots.