5 Keys to Better Beef Stew
By Adina Steiman
Winter is coming. No, seriously, it’s right around the corner.
And that means we must defend ourselves not only from the cold, but from the doldrums that seem to come around this time of year. In other words, it’s time to make a batch of beef stew. Even before the first steaming-hot bite, the sight, scent, and sound of that pot of simmering stew on your stove will make you (and whoever you intend to share your stew with) smile.
And even though there are countless varieties of beef stew, the best recipes all seem to have a few key factors in common. Building a great stew means giving each step the time it needs. If you just throw all of the ingredients together in a pot and simmer it for a few hours, the flavor and texture won’t even come close to that of a methodically built braise.
Learn more about how great beef stews are built, and you’ll always cook up an amazing pot.
1. Sear the meat without crowding the pan. The most annoying part of making beef stew isn’t chopping ingredients or waiting for the pot to finish cooking—it’s waiting for all that beef to finish searing. But searing the meat chunks evenly, on all sides, until they turn a rich, reddish brown is key for building up flavor in the sauce. And in order to do that right, you can’t rush it. Searing the meat in three batches (as in the recipe below) ensures that the beef pieces have enough room to brown rather than just steaming.
Get the recipe: Beef Stew with Potatoes and Carrots
See more: 25 Amazing Thanksgiving Turkeys for Your Feast
2. Cut the vegetables with care. Whether you’re just doing a rough chop of aromatic vegetables that will eventually be strained out of the stew, or cutting rustic chunks that you’ll be spooning up with your beef, consistency is important for even cooking. What’s more, as you can see above, diagonally cut chunks and root vegetables split lengthwise look flat-out delicious in a bowl.
3. Deglaze the pan by adding aromatics. Some recipes for beef stew call for deglazing the pot with wine or another liquid after searing the meat. But the most flavorful recipes postpone that step and instead add chopped onions, celery, garlic, or other aromatics (like lemongrass, ginger, and chiles, above) to the golden-brown, flavor-filled bits at the bottom of the pan. As the aromatics cook, they release enough liquid to “deglaze” the pan most of the way, while building up their own flavor as they caramelize.
Get the recipe: Thai Beef Stew with Lemongrass and Noodles
4. Always test for tenderness and seasoning. Depending on the type of meat you’ve chosen for your stew (and the animal that meat came from), the cooking time your stew will need can vary by 30 to 45 minutes. So be sure to test out a piece of meat by actually tasting it. If it’s not tender enough to eat with a spoon, it’s not ready yet. Be sure not to adjust the seasoning of your stew before it’s reached that tender stage—if you’ll be cooking it further, you’ll be evaporating more liquid and concentrating the seasoning anyway.
See more: The Most Delicious Roast Chicken Dinner You’ll Make This Fall
5. Don’t forget a vibrant finish. A key factor in Osso Buco’s enduring popularity? That fresh, citrusy topping of grated lemon zest, chopped parsley, and minced garlic. You can use that same approach with any stew, finishing it with a finely chopped sprinkling of the same aromatics you used in the dish. Case in point: The beef stew above, which is finished with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, along with grated orange zest and chopped parsley.
Get the recipe: Beef Stew with Leeks
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photos: Romulo Yanes, Ditte Isager, Christopher Hirsheimer
