Is there any better winter food to warm and comfort the body and the soul than a good beef stew?
And this is a good one. The recipe was given to me by my friend, Gaye, whom I believe got it from one of the Red Wing area church cookbooks. The recipe originally called for hamburger; I use beef stew meat. And it is designed for simmering in a slow cooker. It can also be simmered on top the stove but will require stirring occasionally.
Beef Stew Recipe
| Ingredients | Calories |
| 2 pounds beef stew meat | 2187 |
| 1/4 c. Wondra flour | 100 |
| 1 pkg. Liptons Onion Soup Mix (dry product) | 80 |
| 3 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed | 906 |
| 2-1/2 c. carrots, diced (about 3/4 lb) | 155 |
| 5 stalks celery, diced (I like the inside stalks with the leaves) | 30 |
| 1 c. frozen baby peas | 110 |
| 1 can Campbell’s Tomato Rice soup | 275 |
| 1 can Campbell’s Cream of Celery soup | 225 |
| Total for ingredients: | 4068 |
| Calories for each of 16 - 1 cup servings: | 254 |
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Method: Sprinkle Wondra flour over beef stew meat to coat. Remove individual batches of stew meat to a plate when browned until all are done, then return to the fry pan. Add 5-1/2 cups of water, the package of Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix, the Tomato Rice soup, and the Cream of Celery soup. Bring to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes then transfer into a slow cooker. If you don’t have a slow cooker, reduce heat to low, and simmer on stove top. The slow cooker I use has a working capacity of 4.5 quarts (that’s to say I don’t put more than 4.5 quarts of ingredients into my cooker; it probably holds close to 6 quarts). When the stew cooks down, this recipe produces 4 quarts of delicious stew. It will make more or less stew depending on the amount of vegetables you add. You may add rutabaga, corn, beans, or other vegetables as you like. Add the carrots and the celery and allow stew to simmer for 4 - 5 hours. With the slow cooker, I set the timer for 7 hours. Add the potatoes and peas at about the 4 - 5 hour mark and continue simmering until potatoes are cooked through. You’ll notice there is no salt or pepper on the ingredient list. Between the onion soup mix and the two soups, the stew is well-seasoned. If you like a thicker broth than this stew makes, prepare a slurry of 2 Tbsp. Wondra flour and 1/2 cup cold water and stir into stew in the later stage of simmering. This stew reheats well. Serve with soft dinner rolls and butter or thin slices of French bread and butter. Enjoy! |