Slow-Cooked Beef Stew

Categories: Main Dish

Ingredients

• 5 lb beef round or chuck, cut in 2-inch cubes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• Handful fresh sprigs of thyme
• Handful fresh sprigs of Italian parsley
• 4 bay leaves
• 6 thin strips of orange rind (about 2 or 3 inches by 1/2 inch)
• 1 bottle of a dry red wine
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 oz bacon, cut in small pieces
• 2 cups beef stock
• 2 large yellow onions, coarsely chopped
• 5 or 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole
• 5 carrots, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch rounds
• 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

Directions

1. Wash the beef and wipe it dry with paper towels. Season with salt and place in a stainless steel or glass bowl. Using a piece of cheesecloth (or not), bundle together half the thyme, half the parsley, 2 bay leaves and 3 strips of orange rind and tie it with string and add it to the bowl. Add the wine, cover with plastic wrap and let marinate 6 to 8 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Drain and dry the meat and save the marinade.

2. In a sturdy pot heat olive oil until hot. Add bacon and cook, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Discard bacon. Add beef and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until browned all over. Don’t crowd the pan; you might have to brown the meat in batches. Return all beef to pot and add reserved wine marinade, 1 cup of beef stock, onions and garlic. Tie together remaining thyme, parsley, bay leaves and orange rind and add to pot. Add salt and pepper to taste and bring to boil, stirring up browned bits from bottom of pan. Reduce heat and cook, partially covered, for about 1 hour, stirring often. Add carrots and continue cooking for about 1 hour longer or until meat and carrots are tender. Add more beef stock as required.

3. Turn off heat and let the stew cool to room temperature. Refrigerate overnight.

4. Allow to warm to room temperature before reheating. Reheat over low heat. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve in shallow bowls over buttered noodles with a sprinkling of parsley over each serving or serve with crusty bread for dunking.

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