AIBU to ask you how you make stew?

[eternallytired]

And what do you put in your stew?

And does it taste better the second day?

Shamelessly admitting I'm 31 and have never made stew

I use shin beef, ox cheek or neck of lamb. The cheaper the cut, the better your stew will be.

Cube the meat then toss is seasoned flour. Brown the meat very well in the pan. Do this in batches, you want a really good sear.

Then chuck chopped veg, eg onion, celery, leek, carrot into the same pan & fry gently until they start to colour. Deglaze the pan with stock (I use Knorr stockpots) & chuck in some herbs, eg bay, thyme, rosemary & lots of black pepper.

Simmer on a low heat for several hours until the meat is very tender. Give it a stir occasionally & add a bit more water if necessary. Check the seasoning. Enjoy with whatever mashed root veg you fancy .

Beef and Guinness. Pickled walnuts add an extra dimension.

I forgot the important bit about putting the meat ba I in the pan when you add the stock .

Delia is the Queen of this sort of food, so you are in good hands if you use one of her recipes.

It's not stew if it's mince, that's bolognaise or the base of cottage pie! Stew needs chunks of meat (or veggies!).

A decent stew in my opinion has lots of fat, stops the meat getting dry and adds flavour.

Start browning onions, add lardons, bay leaves and whatever else like rosemary. Brown some beef. Add veg, I like chunky carrots, finely chopped celery, mushrooms, and other root veg like turnips or parsnips. Add beef stock, salt and pepper and a load of beer. Also Worcestershire sauce for extra umami. The veg and meat should be just covered in liquid. Cook at 140degC for 3 hours or so, stirring every hour. Also it's nice, but a faff, to brown some shallots in butter and add them in for the last hour or so

There's so many variations, I've never had it with mash, there's always already cubes of potatoes in it

You don’t make stew with mince!

How do you make stew with mince?! That’s chilli or bolognese.....

This recipe but I add mushrooms and a tiny bit of marmite

https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/beef-recipes/beef-and-ale-stew/

@Cyllie33

How do you make stew with mince?! That’s chilli or bolognese.....

😂

@eternallytired are you from Northern Ireland by any chance? We make our stew with mince balls too - potatoes,mince balls,onions carrots all thrown in the pot - boiled with beef stock cube then gravy poured into the pot - it is what it is veg,potatoes and cheap mince thrown in one pot - I believe where I am from that it was because mince was all people could afford at the time. I like it but don’t make it too often,my sister lives in England and wants it every time she come home - homecoming meal lol

If you like lamb, Delia's Irish stew recipe with dumplings is yummy

www.deliaonline.com/recipes/type-of-dish/casseroles-and-stews/irish-stew-with-parsley-dumplings

[quote Inituntiltheend]@eternallytired are you from Northern Ireland by any chance? We make our stew with mince balls too - potatoes,mince balls,onions carrots all thrown in the pot - boiled with beef stock cube then gravy poured into the pot - it is what it is veg,potatoes and cheap mince thrown in one pot - I believe where I am from that it was because mince was all people could afford at the time. I like it but don’t make it too often,my sister lives in England and wants it every time she come home - homecoming meal lol[/quote]
Yes! But I actually don't know anyone other than my mum that makes it with mince beef.

I love it with stewing steak and pork sausages in it

Shin of beef pieces tossed in flour and fried and added to fried onion and bacon bits.

A bottle of ale poured over and pepper and herbs added and vegetables to taste cut large. Any herbs will do like dried mixed but if you have some fresh parsley and thyme even better.

Add three anchovies and a squit of tomato puree or a few cherry tomatoes. ..and a good teaspoons of sugar.

Cook down on a low heat for hours.

If it needs thickening mix a little butter and flour by hand and drop bits of the mix in.

Delicious I promise. .

@eternallytired I don’t know anyone who makes it without ! Like cafes,deli counters etc here sell it with mince. Maybe your mammy is from somewhere near me haha

I'm also NI and only ever heard of people from Derry & Belfast use mince. Savages!

Oh some big mushrooms torn up is also a good addition....

I do really simple slow cooker stew

Beef. Onions. Carrots. Mushrooms. Sometimes turnip. Potatoes.

All chucked in the slow cooker with stock, a couple of bay leaves and a splash of red wine.

I tend to chuck it in the slow cooker over night, turn it off in the morning (thicken the gravy with gravy granules or cornflour if needs be) and reheat later. Or if I want it that day I'll prep it all the night before then take it out the fridge and stick in the slow cooker at 6am

You're meant to saute the onion and brown the beef and it does taste a wee bit better if you do, but not enough for the faff of doing so for me.

I'd do very similar to banjaxxed. And serve with nash, jacket potatoes or dumplings.
I'd do mince in a tomato based sauce to a ragu, andxserve with pasta. Or include beans and serve with rice as a chilli.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/beef-vegetable-casserole?gl=1t59wmxga*YW1wLUdkVXpyc096ek1SdEFKZmtoS2ZjampYZmN6bFZZTFlkelZrcFl2Ql9fSkFqTzZ1T2dyOGNSNjZ4OXBvcktiTEk.#tab-comments

This is a really nice recipe. You can add wine, additional herbs, or whatever you have!

I do the same with mince, but the potatoes are cut bigger and it's mince & tatties rather than stew

@TeamLannister

I'm also NI and only ever heard of people from Derry & Belfast use mince. Savages!

😂 I can see this thread turning into a controversial debate

Now if there's tomatoes, herbs etc when does it turn from a stew to a casserole or cassoulet?!

Don't make stews any more (long time veggie) but when I did my favourite was a lamb hotpot, it was the sliced potatoes on the top soaking up flavours then going crispy...........

Brown beef pieces, soften an onion. Chuck in spuds, carrots, a stick of celery (i remove this before serving, its just for flavour) pour water to cover the veg then add one beef stock cube, a squirt of tomato puree, teaspoon of mixed herbs and let it cook on the stove top for about 2 hours. At the end I add I small amount of gravy granules to thicken and make beefier cos thats how we like it. I LOVE a stew and yes it definitely tastes better the next day. Such a simple one pot dish.