Get yourself some stew meat - either the pre-cut stuff if you're lazy, or some chuck roast or something like that if you want to cut it up yourself. I have no amounts because it's different every time I do it. I tend to put more meat in, to make it a hearty stew instead of a vegetable soup with meat, but my mom likes it the opposite.
Heat some oil in the bottom of a stewpot. Toss the meat in, brown on all sides. If you're more organized than I am, dredge the meat in flour first. (If you wish to get fancy, when you start, brown onions first, throw in some garlic, then brown the meat in that.)
Fill the pot (with meat) with water (well, how much you fill it depends on how much meat you have...do it 'til it feels right, You can always add more or boil it off later). If you're feeling wacky, use beef stock or thorw in some beef bouillon cubes (watch the salt, though...easy to overdo it). Bring to a simmer, simmer about 1.5 hours, until the meat is starting to soften a bit.
In the meantime, cut up any vegetables you want to put in. Carrots, onions and potatoes are the classic ones, but if you've got other vegetables that you want to include, go for it. Corn, peas, and mushrooms I've all done with success. My mom has put in okra before (though she denies it), which I hated, but I hate okra. But just about any veg you like will work (turnips, green peppers, etc.).
Once you've done the 1.5 hours of simmer on the meat, put in the toughest vegetables first - root vegetables, onions, etc. Keep simmering. Once those vegetables start to soften, you can put in the less tough ones; mushrooms, frozen peas, frozen corn, fresh peas and corn, etc.
If you feel like it, throw a couple of bay leaves in with the tough vegetables.
If you're my mother, you get annoyed that the stew isn't brown and put Worcestershire sauce in. If you're me, you get angry at her for ruining your perfectly good stew.
When the vegetables are just about done - cook to your own liking on the mushiness factor - see if the thickness of the stew is to your liking. If you haven't cooked the potatoes so much that they're starting to disintegrate and thicken the stew themselves, and if you failed to dredge the meat in flour when you simmered it, then get some of the stew liquid in a measuring cup, whisk in some flour until it's all dissolved, then pour it back into the stew and stir.
If the stew is too liquid, turn it to a boil and boil some off. If at any point it looks like there's not enough liquid, put some more in.
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Date: 2009-12-08 01:35 am (UTC)Get yourself some stew meat - either the pre-cut stuff if you're lazy, or some chuck roast or something like that if you want to cut it up yourself. I have no amounts because it's different every time I do it. I tend to put more meat in, to make it a hearty stew instead of a vegetable soup with meat, but my mom likes it the opposite.
Heat some oil in the bottom of a stewpot. Toss the meat in, brown on all sides. If you're more organized than I am, dredge the meat in flour first. (If you wish to get fancy, when you start, brown onions first, throw in some garlic, then brown the meat in that.)
Fill the pot (with meat) with water (well, how much you fill it depends on how much meat you have...do it 'til it feels right, You can always add more or boil it off later). If you're feeling wacky, use beef stock or thorw in some beef bouillon cubes (watch the salt, though...easy to overdo it). Bring to a simmer, simmer about 1.5 hours, until the meat is starting to soften a bit.
In the meantime, cut up any vegetables you want to put in. Carrots, onions and potatoes are the classic ones, but if you've got other vegetables that you want to include, go for it. Corn, peas, and mushrooms I've all done with success. My mom has put in okra before (though she denies it), which I hated, but I hate okra. But just about any veg you like will work (turnips, green peppers, etc.).
Once you've done the 1.5 hours of simmer on the meat, put in the toughest vegetables first - root vegetables, onions, etc. Keep simmering. Once those vegetables start to soften, you can put in the less tough ones; mushrooms, frozen peas, frozen corn, fresh peas and corn, etc.
If you feel like it, throw a couple of bay leaves in with the tough vegetables.
If you're my mother, you get annoyed that the stew isn't brown and put Worcestershire sauce in. If you're me, you get angry at her for ruining your perfectly good stew.
When the vegetables are just about done - cook to your own liking on the mushiness factor - see if the thickness of the stew is to your liking. If you haven't cooked the potatoes so much that they're starting to disintegrate and thicken the stew themselves, and if you failed to dredge the meat in flour when you simmered it, then get some of the stew liquid in a measuring cup, whisk in some flour until it's all dissolved, then pour it back into the stew and stir.
If the stew is too liquid, turn it to a boil and boil some off. If at any point it looks like there's not enough liquid, put some more in.
It's a very forgiving dish. :)