Fall Comfort Food: Beef Stew

Unfortunately because I was entertaining I didn’t have a chance to take a photo of this very tasty beef stew.  But it was delicious and, while it says serves 6, 4 of us devoured it.

The beef was so tender and everything had a delicious flavor.  The veggies were tender but not mushy because you only add then for the final 40 minutes.

I made a few changes.  Instead of using the 2 cups of water, I used low sodium beef broth.  I had some sliced mushrooms and one potato on hand so I added those at the same time I added the carrots and celery.  The potato added a bit of starch and thickened the sauce so I did not need to add the cornstarch at the end.

Overall super flavorful.  I served with a simple green salad.  And, make sure to have some crusty bread on hand.

Old Time Beef Stew
Paula Deen

• 2 pounds stew beef
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 1 or 2 bay leaves
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• Dash ground allspice or ground cloves
• 3 large carrots, sliced
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Brown meat in hot oil. Add water, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, bay leaves, onion, salt, sugar, pepper, paprika, and allspice. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours.

Remove bay leaves and garlic clove. Add carrots and celery. Cover and cook 30 to 40 minutes longer.

To thicken gravy, remove 2 cups hot liquid. Using a separate bowl, combine 1/4 cup water and cornstarch until smooth. Mix with a little hot liquid and return mixture to pot. Stir and cook until bubbly.