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My 1980's
vintage Crock-Pot
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I love to come home and have
the house smell of dinner cooking! Beef stew and pot roast are perfect for the Crock-Pot. You
can put all the ingredients together the night before, refrigerate, and start
it the next morning. You could even make up several batches at once, freeze
them, and just take them from the freezer to the Crock-Pot. If you want to
brown the meat and/or saute the vegetables, by all means do so. I'm a "dump it
all in the pot all at once" type of cook. I don't like to do any type of prep
work than cutting up the meat and vegetables.
This recipe for Beef Stew is a
stew itself from recipes I've used and combined over the years. Substitutions
and additions are encouraged! Does someone in your family dislike peas or
mushrooms? Don't add them! Did your mom or grandma add other root vegetables
such as parsnips or sweet potatoes? Add or substitute to make this recipe your
own!
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef top round
or similar stewing cut, cut in cubes
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon fresh
ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 14 ounce can beef
broth or homemade beef broth
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3 cloves fresh garlic
minced
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 stalk celery chopped
- 1 1/2 pounds potatoes
cubed, with or without skins
- 1/2 pound
carrots-frozen or fresh cut fork size
- 4 -8 ounces mushrooms,
fresh or canned (optional)
- 1 cup peas, fresh or
frozen (optional)
- 1 cup red wine such as burgandy (optional)
Stats
- Total time: 8-9 hours
- Prep time: 30 minutes
- Cook time: 8-9 hours
- Servings: 4-6
- Put meat in Crock-Pot.
- Pour flour, salt, and
pepper over meat and stir to coat.
- Add remainder of
ingredients.
- Cook on low for 8-9
hours or high for 4-6 hours.
- If making from a frozen premade batch, I would recommend thawing in the refrigerator overnight and cooking the next day.
Pot Roast
I’m not even sure if you can call this a recipe. The Crock-Pot makes the most tender pot roast imaginable. When it’s on sale,I buy a cut of chuck that weighs about 2 ½ pounds. Although I look for a lean cut, some fat is needed so that the meat is not dry. I put the entire piece of chuck in the Crock-Pot with about 1 quart of water.
The great chef, Paul Prudhomme, said something to the effect that “Water is for washing,” meaning that it does not add to the flavor profile of the meat. I just can’t see spending money on beef broth for cooking the meat when the meat makes its own broth. I’ve tried adding burgundy wine to the roast but it seems to make the meat tougher.
The meat is seasoned with salt and fresh ground pepper. I coarsely slice an onion and layer it on the beef itself and add a bay leaf to the water. Cook on low for 6-8 hours and it’s done! The meat is so tender that you don’t even need a knife. Fork shred the beef and marinate in barbecue sauce for the best BBQ beef sandwiches ever!
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| Image credit: Allposters.com |
