I love this beef stew. I remember my mom making it, at least once, while I was in high school. It uses cabbage, but it cooks down and blends into the stew and is just so good! The original recipe is cooked on the stove-top, but I adapted this for the slow cooker. I love most soups and especially stews, in the slow cooker. The longer you cook this, the thicker it becomes, which is not a bad thing. The pictures were taken of the leftovers the next day, which were even thicker than the first night. (There were only enough leftovers for me to have one bowl for lunch the next day, by the way).
Beef Cabbage Stew (Slow Cooker)
adapted from Allrecipes (originally Taste of Home)
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 14. oz can beef broth
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 bay leaf
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 celery ribs, sliced
4 cups shredded cabbage
1 carrot, sliced
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
salt to taste (I didn't add any)
Slow Cooker Directions:
1. In a large skillet, brown beef in about 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cook the onions with the beef. Transfer to a large slow cooker.
2. Add the beef broth, pepper, bay leaf, potatoes, celery, cabbage, carrot, and tomato sauce. Do not add salt yet- taste at the end of cooking time and add if necessary. The mixture may look like it needs more water- do not add any at this point, because the veggies will release a lot of water. After a few hours, you can add a little if you think it really needs it.
3. Cook on low for about 8 hours, or until meat and veggies are tender.
Stovetop: In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, brown stew met; drain. Add broth to beef. Add onion, pepper and bay leaf. Cover; simmer 1-1/4 hours or until tender. Add potatoes, celery, cabbage and carrot. Cover and simmer 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in tomato sauce and salt. Simmer, uncovered, 15-20 minutes more. Remove bay leaf before serving.
3 comments:
I cooked this in the oven at 275 degrees F. I did not brown the meat. I simply mixed all the ingredients together in a Le Creuset Dutch oven, covered it with the lid, and put the whole thing into the preheated oven. I let it cook slowly for 5 hours. Absolutely delicious. Fairly hassle-free and quite possibly the best beef stew I've ever made. Thank you so much!
That is great to know! I bet the oven really intensified the flavor.
The cooking method came from a recipe in Peg Bracken's "I Hate to Cook Book" published in 1960. The recipe was called "Stayabed Stew": "for those days when you're en negligee, en bed, with a murder story and a box of bonbons, or possibly a good case of flu." The recipe ended: "Put the lid on and put the casserole in a 275 degree oven. Now go back to bed. It will cook happily all by itself and be done in five hours." I love this method (and my Le Creuset pot!) but I like your list of ingredients better. Deep, hearty flavor. Just what beef stew ought to be. And the leftovers are delicious. Simply wonderful and so easy.
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