There was an 80 degree difference between our house here in France and our old house back in Minnesota today.
I was going to post a salad to kick off the new year…
But, to be in empathy with my friends and family back in the frozen north, I decided on this stew.
Normally, when I make stew, I put in a rutabaga.
We both love rutabagas.
But unless I go to the Gran Frais, the big produce market, I can’t get them.
Since rutabagas are really yellow turnips, I decided white turnips, which are easy to find, would be a good substitute.
We are now both fans of white turnips.
I do love it when we get a new vegetable into our menu.
I don’t have a slow cooker / crock pot, but I made this on New Year’s Day and was feeling rather lazy. I browned the beef and put it in a slow oven for a few hours.
Wonderful!
And the best part….. It makes enough for 2 meals (for 2).
Beef, Carrot and Turnip Stew
Total time: 4 hours
Ingredients:
- 24oz (720gr) beef stew meat
- 4 tbs flour
- 1 1/2 tbs paprika
- 1/2 tsp dry mustard
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 bouquet garni
- 2 cups (16oz, 480ml) beef broth
- 1/2 cup (4oz, 120ml) sherry
- 2 onions, quartered
- 3 medium carrots, cut into thirds, then in half
- 2 turnips. peeled and cut into large chunks
- 2 ribs celery, cut into 2 inch lengths
- 3 potatoes, quartered
- 1 tbs cornstarch (maizena) dissolved in 2 tbs beef stock (if needed)
Instructions:
- Put flour, paprika, dry mustard and cumin into a plastic food bag and mix well.
- Add beef, close bag and toss well to coat thoroughly.
- Heat oil in a medium pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add beef and brown on all sides. You will need to do it in several batches, removing browned pieces to a plate as you work.
- After the last of the beef is browned, add broth to pot and stir well to scrape up any browned bits.
- Return beef, add sherry, onions and herbs.
- Cover and bring to a boil.
- Put into a 325F (160C) oven and cook for 3 hours.
- Turn the oven up to 375F (190C).
- Add carrots, celery, turnips and cook for 30 minutes.
- Add potatoes and cook for 30 minutes longer.
- To finish:
- If desired, for a thicker gravy, dissolve cornstarch in beef stock.
- Remove pot and put on stove-top on medium heat.
- Add cornstarch and stir until sauce is thickened. Serve directly from pot or ladle into serving bowl.
It could also be done in a slow-cooker…. If you have one.
Mon mari is back to work.
He has 2 sets of doors left to make. It’s been warm enough for him to do most of the work in the barn, but he still does the gluing in the house.
He also has all the trim around the ceiling done.
Yes, we have a chandelier in our pantry.
Mon mari found it at the local tip (trash dump). One of the globes was broken and it was filthy, but he brought it home, cleaned it up and then had to find something to do with it….
And there it is.
Why not?
You gotta love a pantry with a chandelier. I used to have a small one in my toilet in my last house !!
Your pantry is getting the treatment it deserves – after all it is an extension of the kitchen which is the most important room of a home!
And he even has a sense of humor! The man is extraordinary!
Yes, why not? It’s beautiful.
And why not use the oven as a slow cooker, it’s certainly the right thing to do in the winter! I could use a good stew about now.
Beef stew sounds perfect right now. Turnips are harder to love (for me) than rutabagas, but great in stews. The best part is the addition of sherry…never tried that in beef stew. Bet it is awesome!
Kate, it add a certain je ne sais quoi….
Gill, if only it were closer to the kitchen…. It’s actually part of the barn, but was the original kitchen for the house – when they stopped cooking in the fireplace, I think….
Pam, he does OK LOL
Tanna, actually, it cleaned up pretty well. – And yes, we can use the heat in winter…
Elle, this was the first time for us to have turnips. I bought more to fix as a veg…. we shall see…,