Sunday = a big pot of stew on your stove!
As long as I can remember, a fall Sunday has usually meant making a big pot of something on the stove. It is Sunday after all. For one thing, Sunday is usually a laid back day, so why not cook? At our house, Sunday stew can be defined as potatoes, carrots, onions, and meat left to simmer on the stove for a few hours. These days there are many ways to enjoy a stew immediately, but I think there is something so comforting about smelling a simmering stew on your cook top. Sure, we can all throw some potatoes, carrots, and onions in a big pot, but the sauce is the secret ingredient! Like most recipes from my kitchen, Sunday stew has enjoyed an evolution through the years.
when a recipe begins with bacon….
My Sunday stew begins in the typical way. The first step to savory Sunday stew is searing your meat before adding the rest of your ingredients. I like to sear my stew meat and them remove it from the pan. The tasty little tidbits left from the searing are the perfect beginning to a savory sauce. I think I forgot to clarify something. The stew meat is seared in bacon fat. Now you know why we love this stew so much! Any recipe that begins with bacon is a favorite in our house.
plunk, plunk, plunk…
The second step is to add your carrots and onions to the pot. All of the sudden your kitchen smells delightful! Especially when the minced garlic and other fresh seasonings are added to the pot. In my opinion, it is particularly important to layer your flavors whenever you are making a stew. The extra time that it takes is well worth the little bit of extra effort. Once the base of the Sunday stew is set, all that is left to do is plunk everything else in the pot.
farmers market carrots
farmers market fingerlings and fresh rosemary
time for the taste testers to show up…
Red wine, beef broth, horseradish, and mustard are a mouth watering combination to add to the stew pot. Throw in some chopped potatoes and parsnips, and all of the hard work is done. At this point, I usually have some taste test visitors in my kitchen. Just to make sure that we are on the right track! Finally the Sunday stew has reduced to the perfect consistency. Pull up a chair and let me get you a bowl!
Sunday stew
When the weather turns crispy, dig out your biggest pot and start chopping your veggies and meat for a savory mouth watering Sunday stew!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 1/2 hours
- Total Time: 2 - 2 1/2 hours
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
- Category: main dish
- Method: cook top
Ingredients
5 slices of center cut bacon
2 – 3 pounds of top round or top sirloin meat trimmed and cut into bite sized chunks
Salt and pepper for seasoning beef
Canola oil as needed
12 medium sized carrots chopped
1 onion chopped in big chunks
2 pounds of potatoes chopped in chunks ( I like fingerling )
5 parsnips chopped in chunks
5 cloves of minced garlic
2 cartons of beef broth
1 6 oz. can of tomato paste
1 14oz. can of diced tomatoes ( flavored variety is ok to use )
1/3 cup horseradish
1/3 cup creamy dijon mustard
3 sprigs of fresh chopped rosemary
10 sprigs of fresh thyme stripped
8 leaves of fresh sage chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
In a big pot or dutch oven cook bacon on medium heat until browned
Remove bacon, leaving bacon fat in the bottom of the pan
Season beef on all sides with salt and pepper
Add beef in small batches to pot with bacon fat until seared on all sides. You may need to add a small amount of canola oil with the final batches of beef. Make sure that you are leaving space between the chunks of beef for easier browning
Remove beef and set aside
Add carrots, parsnips, and onions to pan with a small amount of oil if needed and cook for a few minutes, stirring to loosen the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.
Sprinkle approximately 1/2 of chopped rosemary, thyme and sage to pot
Add minced garlic and reserved bacon to pan being careful to let it burn
Pour wine, beef broth, horseradish, tomato paste, and mustard into pot and stir
Add chopped potatoes
Let simmer for 20- 30 minutes
Sprinkle in remaining rosemary, thyme and sage
Salt and pepper to taste
Simmer for 30 minutes – 1 hour until reduced to your preference
Leave a Reply