Beef Stew Recipe

Been a little scared of cooking beef as it might turn out tough & dry. Until we did some research and found out this interesting article by Serious Eats, they mentioned that the best part of the beef to make beef stew is chuck. It has lot of connective tissue and fats. Also, it's affordable and preforms the best. Click here to read more.


Ingredients A
4 tablespoons Vegetable oil
400g Beef Chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes
100g Oxtail
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For searing, heat a large Dutch Oven or a Soup Pot with a tight-fitting lid with Vegetable Oil. Season the beef chunks and oxtail generously with salt and pepper, and add to the pan. Saute (uncovered) for about 8 minutes stirring occasionally, ensure all sides are well-browned. Transfer the beef to a plate and set aside. Rinse the Dutch Oven or a Soup Pot, wipe out the pan and return the pot to the stove.

Ingredients B
2 tablespoons Butter / Olive Oil
1 medium Brown Onions
3 cloves Garlic, crushed
1/2 cup Tomato Paste
1 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour (optional)
1 cup Water
1 cup Beef or Chicken Broth
1/2 cup Red Wine
2 sprigs Fresh Parsley / 1 teaspoon of Dry Parsley
2 sprigs Fresh Thyme / 1 teaspoon of Dry Thyme
2 sprigs Fresh Rosemary / 1 teaspoon of Dry Rosemary (optional)
2 Bay Leaves
200g medium Potatoes, quartered
2 medium Carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 Celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste

If using the oven to cook for 1.5 hours, preheat the oven to 165°C.

Heat the large Dutch Oven or the Soup Pot with butter or Olive Oil. Add in Onion and cook for about 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute or until lightly browned. Add the seared beef chunks and oxtail. If you're adding flour mix it into the water, we omitted as we prefer our stew to be soupy base, however, if you like slightly thick soup you may add. Add Water, Broth, Red Wine and bring to a simmer. Place the Parsley, Thyme, Rosemary, and Bay Leaves in a soup-bag and add the bundle to the pot. Cover and transfer to the oven to cook for approximately 1.5 hours where the meat will be just tender. This can also be done on the stove at a low simmer, it will take approximately 1 hour.

Remove pot from the oven or stove, with a ladle skim as much fat off as possible. Add the Potatoes, Carrots, Celery and bring to a simmer on top of the stove for another 1 hour until the liquid slightly thickens and the vegetables are tender, not forgetting to stir occasionally. Remove and discard the herb soup bag. Stir in the vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Dish into bowls and serve hot with rice or mash potatoes.

Click here for our blog page Cooking Classes for more recipes. Hope you will be inspired~

Deliciously Rich Tasty French Onion Soup

This is a super easy soup to make aside from the length of cooking time of needed and some stirring needed in the middle. Bringing all of you with the detail steps of the cooking process and also to keep this as a record for me to recreate this dish again.


Ingredients
Ceramic Pot with lid
900g Yellow Onions
1.5 tablespoons Butter
0.25 cup of Sherry / White Wine
3 cups of Chicken Broth
1 cup of Beef Broth
1 Bay Leaf
1 spring of Thyme
3 cup of Water
1 teaspoon of Salt
Pepper
2 slices of Baguette (Using normal bread like me is not really a good idea but it's fine)
Grated or 2 slices of Cheese (Best selections as ranked: Gruyere - classic preference, Swiss, Jarlsbeg, Parmesan)

Step 1 Pre-heat oven to 250°C.
Step 2 Cut the onions in half through the root end, and slice into 1/4 inch thick slices from pole to pole.
Step 3 Spray the Ceramic Pot with cooking spray or pour some oil into the bottom and spread it all around with a kitchen towel.
Step 4 Cut the butter into cubes and scatter it around the Ceramic Pot.
Step 5 Put the slices of onion into the Ceramic Pot and loosen them up. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt over the top.
Step 6 Cover the Ceramic Pot and place it into the oven for 30mins.
Step 7 Remove the Ceramic Pot after 30mins and take off the cover (Remember to use oven mitts!), stirring the onions and scraping down the sides. Repeat this one more time.
Step 8 The onions should just be starting to brown. Replace the cover on the Ceramic Pot but leave it slightly ajar cook for another hour.
Step 9 Remove the pot and place it on the stove over a medium high heat. Stir frequently and scrape down the sides.
Step 10 After 10-15 minutes, a dark crust should form at the bottom of the Ceramic Pot. Don’t be worried, this is fond, and it’s full of flavor. Your house would be fill with sweet onion aroma at this stage.
Step 11 After the fond is formed, pour in 1/4 cup of water and scrape the fond up from the bottom, stirring it into the onions. Repeat this 3 more times. At the end of the 4 times over the stove. The onions will be very brown and soft at this point – that’s a good sign!
Step 12 After the fourth scraping, let the fond develop one more time, then deglaze with 1/2 cup of sherry. Scrape up all the brown bits and mix it with the onions. At this point the onions should be a very dark, deep brown color.
Step 12 Pour in 2 cups of water and both the chicken and beef broths. Add in the bay leaf and a sprig of thyme. Stir to combine, then turn the heat up to high.
Step 13 When the soup starts to boil, cover the Ceramic Pot and turn the heat to low. Simmer for 30 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as needed.

Preparation for Storage.
- Let it cool in the pot. Transfer to your storage box by consumption portion.
- Place in fridge if you're consuming in 1-2days
- Place in freezer if you're consuming in a week or 2.

Preparation before serving.
Step 1 To prepare the soup for serving, toast slices of baguette most suitable but plain bread is fine.
***Just 1 slice per bowl is sufficient I'm just too greedy maybe cause I'm hungry after work.
Step 2 Ladle some hot soup into an oven safe bowl to warm up the soup.
Step 3 Cover the top of the soup with the toasted baguette and top the baguette slices with cheese.
Step 4 Place the bowls under the broiler. Watch it very carefully as the cheese bubbles and browns very quickly.
Step 5 Once the cheese has slightly brown take it out and serve. (Remember to use oven mitts!)


The broth is rich and deep, and the onion flavor really shines through. If you love French onion soup like deary do, do give this recipe a try.

Enjoy sipping every spoon of it~

Click here for our blog page Cooking Classes for more recipes. Hope you will be inspired~