Now, after the first snow has fallen, so have the temperatures. Next to my love for soups (not only while it’s cold outside) I developed a sort of addiction to all kinds of stews.That’s why I want to share a stew recipe with a little twist, an oriental beef stew.
Oriental Beef Stew: Enjoy
Stew
What I really love about stews is that they are incredibly easy to make and you won’t need to do much cleaning afterwards, as everything is in one pot. Besides that, you have the tasty food and the delicious sauce developing simultaneously, which is fantastic in my opinion.
The fact that the solid ingredients are covered with plenty of liquids makes this a beginner-friendly dish. It’s really difficult to overcook it as it’s mainly simmered (i.e. cooked on low to medium heat). This gives you time to season to taste and definitely enough time to intervene if you feel things are going wrong. And even if you slightly overcook it, it still tastes good!
Stews are nothing new, not even remotely. According to Herodutus the Scythians (Scythia is a region of Central Eurasia in the classical antiquity, encompassing regions from Eastern Europe to Central Asia)
“put the flesh into an animal’s paunch, mix water with it, and boil it like that over the bone fire. The bones burn very well, and the paunch easily contains all the meat once it has been stripped off. In this way an ox, or any other sacrificial beast, is ingeniously made to boil itself.”
This brings me to another great aspect of stews; you can use really any kind and cut of meat you want. Especially cheap cuts are great for stews. The cheaper cuts are full of flavor and will become incredibly tender while cooking.
Classical Stews
Not only are stews easy to make, but you can do them with almost anything. Any kind of meat or vegetables. This versatility is great and you will surely manage to always find produce to go with your mood and season.
Nevertheless there are plenty of classical stews with their own names tagged to it. Here’s a short list of a few classics:
- Beef bourguignon, a French dish of beef stewed in red burgundy wine
- Beef Stroganoff, a stew with beef from Russia
- Bouillabaisse, a fish stew from Provence, France
- Caldeirada, a fish stew from Portugal
- Cassoulet, a French bean stew
- Chicken stew, whole chicken and seasonings
- Chili con carne, Mexican-American meat and chili pepper stew
- Daal, the Indian legume stew that has many varieties, a staple food throughout Asia
- Eintopf (“one pot”), a German stew that includes a vast number of unlimited ingredients
- Feijoada, Brazilian or Portuguese bean stew
- Goulash, a Hungarian meat stew with paprika
- Gumbo, a Louisiana creole dish
- Hachee, a Dutch type of stew with wine or vinegar
- Jjigae, 찌개, a Korean dish with many variations
- Nabemono, なべ物, the full range of Japanese hot pots
- Pot-au-feu, a simple French beef stew
- Ratatouille, a French vegetable stew
There are plenty more classics out there, from all over the world. Use them as a starting point or inspiration. Either way, enjoy the savoury advantages of a great stew.
I hope you enjoy my recipe of an oriental beef stew. I certainly do. Happy cooking and once you tried it, make sure to send me pictures of your dishes!
Oriental Beef Stew
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- 800 g beef (a cheap cut, e.g. leg, brisket, shoulder)
- 2 bell peppers
- 3 medium sized onions
- fresh chili (to taste)
- 3 cloves garlic (pressed)
- olive oil
- 265 g chickpeas
- 500 tomatoes (sieved)
- 400 ml beef stock
- red wine (optional)
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp marjoram
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp rosemary
- tsp salt (to taste)
- tsp pepper (to taste)
- Cut the meat (if not already pre-cut), the bell peppers and onions into big chunks.
- Heat a large pot to high heat, add some olive oil and then the onions and the meat. Once it gets a little color add the bell peppers.
- Cut the chili, press the garlic and add to pot.
- Add the remaining ingredients and the seasoning.
- If you decided to use red wine now is the moment to add it; otherwise just use some beef stock. Deglaze the pot!
- Reduce heat to medium and let simmer until meat is tender. Depending on your cut and the size of the chunks this can take between 30-60 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Taste and re-season if necessary.
This dish can be easily re-sized for bigger groups of people. Serve it with couscous, rice or pita bread!
Alternative meat: the recipe tastes also great with lamb.