Marinated beef simmered low and slow with orange, thyme, fennel, wine, bacon, and carrots served over mashed potatoes for a meal that'll instantly warm your soul.
With the winter storms that have been dumping on us and give us no sign of relief in the next coming weeks, I thought I would share my best recipe for staying warm!
One of the few things that I look forward to in winter (besides Christmas of course) is stew. My all-time favorite meal when it's chilly or just downright frigid. There is nothing that brings back memories more than a good stew simmering on the stove all day to remind you of days past playing in the snow and being chilled to the bone. You come inside feeling like you'll never be warm again and you're exhausted from building and climbing and clumping big ole snow boots through the snow. Your cheeks are rosy, and truth be told your nose is running, and you get a big bowl of stew that seems to stick to your bones. That is hygge for me. The second it gets a bit chilly outside I'm getting stew meat from the store.
Ingredients:
10 sprigs of fresh thyme
6 bay leaves, imported preferred
1 navel orange, peel removed and saved and orange divided into 4 segments
4 1/2 lbs stew beef
750 ml hearty red wine, like a Côtes Du Rhône
2 tbsp fennel seeds
9 oz thick cut bacon, cut into chunks
6 oz tomato paste
Olive oil
3 onions, peeled and chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
4 1/2 cups water
6 large carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 cup Kalamata olives, no pits
Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions:
Take some twine and tie together a bundle of thyme, bay leaves, and orange peel.
In a large bowl or zip top bag, add the stew meat, herb and orange peel bundle, orange segments, the bottle of red wine, and fennel seeds. Mix well and make sure the meat is completely covered by the wine. Let sit out at room temperature, covered, for 8 hours to overnight, occasionally turning the meat and pushing it down.
When you are ready to cook, drain the beef over a bowl, reserving the marinade liquid. Throw away the orange segments.
In a large stock pot, add a bit of olive oil. Heat over medium-high and then add the bacon chunks. Stir frequently until the bacon is golden and cooked. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon and let sit on a paper towel-lined plate.
In batches, brown the meat in the stock pot. Do not crowd. Make sure the meat is nice and dark on all sides before removing and adding more.
Once beef is all browned, add the garlic and onions. Fry for a few minutes, about 3-5 minutes, until the onions are nice and golden in color.
Add the beef and bacon back to the pot. Pour the reserved marinade back into the pot over the meat with the herb bundle.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Partially cover and let the liquid reduce for about 20-30 minutes.
Add the tomato paste, 4 1/2 cups water, and carrots. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let simmer uncovered for 3 hours, stirring occasionally to ensure there is no sticking.
In the last 10 minutes, add the olives. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Remove the herb bundle before serving. Serve over mashed potatoes!
Mashed Potatoes:
6 russet potatoes, peeled and roughly cut
2 tbsp butter
8 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt and Pepper to taste
In a large saucepan, add cut potatoes and enough water to cover them (bonus: use chicken stock for a deeper flavor), add salt.
Bring to a boil and let cook for 10-15 minutes until a fork can easily pierce a potato. Drain potatoes in colander.
While potatoes are draining, to the same pot add butter and garlic. Let cook over low heat just to melt the butter and slightly cook the garlic. Add the potatoes back in and mash with a potato masher. Add heavy cream, salt and pepper to taste, and mix until it reaches a smooth, fluffy consistency.
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