This may sound lame but i've never made a stew before!?!
here's what i've got in the cupboard/fridge... please tell me what i can and can't use and how to do it??
diced beef
potatos
celery
carrot
cabbage
brocolli
corn
asparagus
minced garlic
salt and pepper
soy sauce
gravy
tinned tomato and basil mix
and in the garden i've got some
garlic chives
parsley
oregarno
can i make a stew?? i don't have any stock... can it taste good without stock??
Answers: advice please?
here's what i've got in the cupboard/fridge... please tell me what i can and can't use and how to do it??
diced beef
potatos
celery
carrot
cabbage
brocolli
corn
asparagus
minced garlic
salt and pepper
soy sauce
gravy
tinned tomato and basil mix
and in the garden i've got some
garlic chives
parsley
oregarno
can i make a stew?? i don't have any stock... can it taste good without stock??
No, this situation isn't lame. There's a first time for everything!! :)
You can make a stew, but you will need to buy or borrow some butter, margarine, or oil. Without some sort of fat/oil to brown things in, your stew won't taste so good! It'd be edible, but unappetizing.... if not browned by frying, the meat will be grey and have poor texture, and you won't get much flavor from it.
Using the tomatoes, gravy, and the chives you can probably get away with not having stock. It won't be perfect though. If possible, maybe you could use beer diluted with water, or broth/bouillon cubes as a stock substitute. Even a beef, pork, or chicken flavoring packet from ramen noodles can be used to make a cheap stock!!
Here is a recipe using the ingredients you have. All I've added which you didn't list, is some oil, butter, or margarine.
It would also be improved if you had an onion...but it will be OK without one.
1. Chop 1 cup cabbage (about a man sized heaping handlful) into 1" pieces. Heat 2 to 3 Tablespoons veggie oil, butter or margarine in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add beef and sauté (fry while stirring) until brown on all sides, about 4-5 minutes. Add cabbage & garlic, sprinkle the cabbage with 1/2 tsp salt, and saute' until cabbage is wilted, 1-2 minutes.
Add gravy, very gradually...thinned with water to the consistency of clear soup, to substitute as stock. Be very careful with the gravy powder-- too much will make the stew unpleasantly salty. Add the tinned tomato & basil mix. Add 1 Tbsp oregano, 1 Tbsp soy sauce and 1/2 tsp pepper. Stir to combine.
Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, then cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Stews take a long time to cook since slow, long cooking is necessary to make the meat deliciously tender.. You can also cook this in an electric slow-cooker (crockpot), or in the oven on medium heat for between 1-2 hours.
2. peel potatoes, & cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Wash & chop celery into 1/2" chunks.
peel carrots & chop into 2" pieces.
If you have an onion, peel & chop into 1/2" chunks.
3. While the meat and liquid is simmering, melt 1 Tbsp butter or margarine in another large pot over medium heat. Or just use 1 Tbsp oil, if you don't have butter/margarine. Add potatoes, celery and carrots, and onion (if you have it). Sauté vegetables until golden, about 20 minutes. Set aside until the beef stew in step one has simmered for one hour.
4. Add vegetables & chives to beef stew. You may also add corn at this point, if desired. Simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes. Tilt pan and spoon off fat. Transfer stew to serving bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve.
The broccoli and the asparagus don't generally go too well in stews, in my experience. Best save them for another dish, possibly a salad, a cheese soup with veggies added, or an omelette. They also are yummy if steamed & topped with cheese sauce, or hollandaise sauce! :)
lol
Use the beef of course
potatoes
celery
carrots
corn
garlic
salt/pepper
i'm not sure what tinned tomatoes and basil is but if it's canned then use that
chives
parsley
and to help your stock problem just make a watery gravy and cook it with that.
It won't taste as good without stock - can you get stock cubes? If you have no onions either, then you're missing out. You can still make a stew though.
First of all, fry the beef to sear it and get some of the meat nice and brown. This starts you off with good flavours. Without the frying beforehand, your meat will be grey and flabby and you won't get much flavour from it.
You can also fry sliced celery until it's soft, once the beef is brown and in the same pan. It will collect flavour from the juice. Add this to the casserole dish, with the beef. Then use boiling water to make up gravy in the frying pan, and pour it into the casserole dish - a spoon of gravy granules and a cup full of water. If it looks too thin, add more powder, if it tastes far too strong, add more water. You only need to get it roughly right.
Now chop up your carrot and potato, and add any of the other vegetables except asparagus. Too much cabbage and broccoli can make the finished stew taste 'cabbagey'. Too much gravy powder will make the stew very salty.
Now put the lid on the casserole and put all of this in the oven at a medium to high heat until the whole stew is bubbling (about half an hour) and then turn it down to a low heat for an hour or two, or right down to the minimum heat for overnight. Or you can put the entire thing into a slow cooker overnight or all day while you work. Because you have the stew under a lid, you don't need all that much liquid. Stews take a long time to cook.
In the last ten minutes before you eat, you can add chopped garlic chives for added flavour.
It won't be a perfect stew but it should at least be edible.
Hi - shame there isn't onion in the list of ingredients :( ...
If you have an onion, chop into small pieces, fry till softened and slightly golden in color and then set aside.
Then fry the diced beef to seal it and give it a browned appearance.
Once you've done that, put into a heavy casserole dish and add in the onions.
Cut the carrot into small cubes and add that to the mix; do the same for the celery.
You should add some seasoning, such as garlic, salt and pepper, but keep it light (you can adjust this at the end). I see you mention gravy - you could use a little of this,
Add the tin of chopped tomatoes and some extra water.
Place in oven and cook slowly on a medium heat for between 1-2 hours. Slow, long cooking is what will make the meat beautifully tender.
I'd tend to cook some of the other vegetables separately - the cabbage, broccoli (you could make a cheese sauce for this).
Potatoes - well, my preference would be to have them boiled with this meal - but if they are the floury type of potato you could add one to the stew as it is cooking to make the juices into a thicker gravy.
... Hope that helps.
A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in water or other water-based liquid, and that are then served without being drained.
Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables (potatoes, beans, etc.), fruits (such as peppers and tomatoes), meat, poultry, sausages and seafood. While water can be used as the stew-cooking liquid, wine, stock, and beer (in particular, for chili) are also common. Seasoning and flavourings may also be added, as may be thickeners like corn starch or flour. Stews are typically cooked at a relatively low temperature (simmered, not boiled), to allow flavors to marry.
I think a stew can be just lovely even if you don't use stock. Not sure what cut of meat you have but I usually use the tougher type meats which require slow cooking. You can get inventive with stews and casseroles. Now with your ingredients I would first coat the beef pieces in flour and very quickly sort of fry them in maybe oil or butter and then take them out as soon as they are browned. Usually I would then slice up a couple of onions and brown them with not too much garlic and with all of those ingredients of yours I would be inclined to dump in the whole lot and you would get a lovely saucy mixture with that tinned tomato mix in with everything. I would let this mixture of things slowly cook for maybe half an hour and then I would stir in the browned beef pieces and if you are doing this mixture in a large saucepan then put the lid on after maybe adding some pepper and salt and let it cook nice and slow on the oventop - not boiling - just a mild simmer. Now I always think a stew tastes great the next day better than the day you make it so I'd be waiting for it to cool after about 1 and a half hour's slow cooking and when it is cool put it in a tupperware container in the fridge. The next day skim off any fat that may have risen to the surface and put it back to warm up slowly in a saucepan with lid on and then it is ready to eat and any left over maybe freeze it for another meal. I would not overdo the soy sauce - maybe just a quarter of a cup put in with the other things and I would be inclined to cook (boil) the potatoes separately as a complement to the stew and you don't want to get too mushy.
I also don't think you need to use the gravy. The stew should be a bit runny but not too much. You might decide to add a little water to it before slow cooking it when all the ingredients are in (or some white wine??). Hope all goes well. Oh you chop up the vegies of course but don't go too fine like about half inch thick carrot pieces and celery and stuff. Hope this helps and there are plenty of recipes to guide you further through a Google search. Type in "Stews+Recipes".
Adapt the following recipe to suit your needs. Substitute the diced beef for the stew meat, and the corn for the peas. If it is beef or brown gravy you have, add that to the pot. If not, drain the juice from the tomatoes and add just the tomatoes.
I am not certain how the stew would taste with the soy sauce, so if you do add it be sure to add only one or two drops at a time and let the stew cook for a few minutes before you taste it. Add a little bit of chives if you wish. I am certain your stew will be delicious. (You can try the recipe another time.)
CAROL’S BEEF STEW
Vegetable oil
2 lb. beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieced
1 c. flour
2 teaspoons salt
1-1/4 tsp. black pepper
4-5 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 lb. small new potatoes, quartered
1 stalk celery, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/4 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Black Pepper
1 can mushrooms, undrained (optional)
1/2 c. frozen green peas, thawed
Place flour, salt and pepper in a paper bag or a resealable plastic bag. Shake well. Add the meat, a few pieces at a time. Shake to coat lightly with flour. Repeat until all the meat has been floured. In a Dutch oven or large heavy pan, pour just enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Heat pan to medium-high heat. Add the meat. Brown the meat lightly on all sides. Add the onion and cook until the onion is tender. Cover the meat with water. Cook with pan covered for 30 minutes over medium heat. Add the carrots, potatoes, celery, spices and Worcestershire sauce. Stir and re-cover the pan. Cook for 20 minutes more. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Add the mushrooms and green peas. Cook an additional 6 or 7 minutes. Remove from heat. Discard the bay leaf. Serve hot with buttered biscuits.