Bacon and Beef Stew

I like making stews because I can add whichever vegetables and spices I like to beef, which I love.  What could go wrong?  Well, if you read the recipe carefully, you will notice that there is no mention of preparing the beef.  It simply says "stir in beef" at the end. This came from allrecipes.com. Look it up.

So, I made a bunch of executive decisions.  I floured the beef and browned it in the bacon fat.  I used Nantes carrots and fingerling potatoes, and added mushrooms, leeks and shallots.  I boiled the carrots and potatoes until tender in additional beef broth and then added the other vegetables.  Finally, I added the beef back in and simmered the stew for another 10 minutes or so and I used more beer than specified. I did stick to the 4 cloves of garlic.

It was delicious!

3 servings

19 calculated points

Malbec, Cabernet Franc

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bacon (about 7-8 slices) chopped
• 4 medium carrots cut into 1/2-in. pieces (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 1 large red onion (about 10 oz.) cut into 1/2-in. pieces
• 4 garlic cloves chopped (about 2 Tbsp.)
• 1 cup beer
• 1 ⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
• 8 cups low-sodium beef broth
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 ⁄2 teaspoon black pepper
• 12 ounces baby golden potatoes
• 1 1⁄2 pounds beef chuck or sirloin
• 3 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 ⁄2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium-high until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a plate lined with paper towels, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings in Dutch oven. Add carrots and onion to drippings in Dutch oven; cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, 4 to 6 minutes. Add garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, 1 minute. Add beer; cook about 5 minutes, stirring and scraping to loosen browned bits from bottom of Dutch oven. Stir in flour; cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened and beginning to brown, 5 minutes. Whisk in broth, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add potatoes; cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in beef, mustard, vinegar, and cooked bacon. Sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately.