Crockpot Mongolian Beef

Mongolian Beef

Serves 4-6

                                                                             Prep Time: 10 minutes
                                                                             Cook Time:  4 Hours
                                                                             Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1- 2½ pound flatiron or flank steak
¼ Cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons  olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, grated
¼ teaspoon chili flake
¾ cup soy sauce
¾ cup water
¾ cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup carrot, grated

3 or 4 green onions sliced diagonally into 1-inch lengths for garnish

sesame seeds for garnish

Preparation

cut the steak:

Place the steak in front of you and, with a sharp knife held at a 45-degree angle, slice the meat against the grain into thin (about 1/4-inch) strips.

create cooking sauce:

Combine the olive oil, garlic, ginger, chili flake, soy sauce, water, and brown sugar in your slow cooker.

prepare the steak:

Cut flank steak into thin strips, cutting across the grain. Put steak into a Ziploc bag with the cornstarch and shake to coat.

bring it all together:

Add the coated beef to the crockpot, stir to combine and ensure the all the beef with sauce.

cook the beef:

Cover the crock-pot with its lid and cook on high for 2-3 hours or on low 4-5 hours, or until meat is cooked through and tender.

About 30 minutes before done stir in the grated carrots.

service:

Serve over rice, garnished with sesame seeds and green onions.

Jo's Great Texas Red Chili

Jo’s Great Texas Red Chili

Makes about 3½ quarts

(America)

                                                                            Prep time:   20 minutes

                                                                            Cook time:  3 hours  

                                                                            Total time:  3 hours 20 minutes

Ingredients

¼ pound suet, finely chopped
6 lbs. of lean beef, coarsely cubed into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup chili powder (about 4½ ounces)
2 tablespoons crushed cumin seeds or ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground oregano
2 tablespoons salt
1 to 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 quarts beef stock or canned beef broth
½ cup masa harina or cornmeal
½ cup cold water

Preparation

1.  Fry suet in a stock pot or kettle until crisp.

  

2,  Brown the beef, about 1 lb. at a time, remove each lb. as it browns.

3.  When all beef is browned, return it to the pot.  Add all the seasonings and the beef stock.  Cover and simmer for 1½ - 2 hours.  Skim off any fat that rises to the surface.

4.  Combine masa harina or cornmeal with the cold water and stir the mixture into the chili.  Insure that the water/corn meal mixture is thoroughly incorporated into the chili. 

5.  Simmer for 30 minutes more until Chile thickens.

service:

Serve the chili accompanied by tortillas, chopped onion and cheddar cheese.

Sauerbraten

Sauerbraten

(Sour Beef)

(Germany)

serves 8

                                                                       Prep time: 24 hours
                                                                       Cook time: 1hour 15 minutes
                                                                       Total time: 25 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

sour beef:

2 tablespoons pickling spices
30 whole cloves
10 juniper berries
4 cups dark vinegar
2 cups water
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 large carrot, roughly chopped
1-inch piece of fresh ginger
4 pounds boneless beef chuck roast (either whole or cut into large cubes if you prefer)
2 cups sugar
3/4 pounds gingersnaps
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

optional dumplings:

10 Potatoes
2 eggs
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
4 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder

Preparation

marinate the beef:

Form a bouquet garni of the pickling spices, cloves, and juniper berries.

Create a marinade by combining the vinegar, water, salt and pepper.

Place meat, the onion, celery, carrot, ginger and the bouquet garni in a glass or ceramic bowl large enough to contain both the meat and enough marinade to cover meat.  

Pour the liquid over meat, pushing the meat down into the liquid, if there is not enough liquid to completely submerge the beef, add additional vinegar and water to bring the level up. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or longer. 

cook the beef*:

Place the marinated beef and the onions in your crock pot, retain the marinating liquid.  

Stir the sugar into the marinating liquid and add the marinade to the crock pot until it covers the beef, if the marinating liquid does not completely cover the beef add a mixture of additional water and vinegar to bring the level up.  Reserve any remaining marinating liquid.

Cover and cook the roast (or beef cubes) on Low for 8 hours. Turn slow cooker off. Transfer roast to a cutting board and cover with aluminum foil (or remove the beef cubes to a bowl). 

create the sauce:

Place the ginger snaps in a large resealable plastic bag and crush them.

Strain the cooking liquid into a large bowl or large measuring cup and discard the onion and the bouquet garni.  Pour the strained liquid into large sauce pan over high heat, stir the crushed ginger snaps into the marinating liquid.

Turn heat down to low and simmer, stirring, until the gravy is thickened and richly flavoured, about 15 minutes.

Taste and correct the seasoning with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  If the sauce is too sour salt will mitigate the sourness.

 optional potato dumplings (start the dumplings about 1 hour before service):

prepare the potatoes:

While the sour beef is cooking, peel the potatoes and slice into quarters.  Place a large pot of heavily salted water over high heat.  When the water comes to a boil reduce heat to a simmer and add the potatoes.  Cook the potatoes until tender and easily pierced by a fork and almost fall apart, about 30 minutes.

Drain the cooked potatoes thoroughly in a large colander.

When the potatoes have finished draining, place them back into the now dry pot and put the pot back onto the stove Turn the burner on low. What we’re going to do is mash the potatoes over low heat, allowing all the steam to escape, before adding in all the other ingredients. That way, the potatoes won’t be watery or “mealy.”

Mash until most of the steam has escaped and the chunks of potato have been mashed well, about three minutes.  Remove the mashed potatoes from the stove and allow them to cool to room temperature.

Add salt and eggs and mix well until completely combined.  In a separate bowl whisk together the flour and baking powder and gradually mix into the potatoes.

form the dumplings: 

Dip your hands in flour and scoop up enough of the potato mixture to form into about a 2 to 3-inch ball, and place the ball onto a plate.  Continue the process until all the mashed potatoes have been formed into balls.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat, place some of the dough balls into the boiling water without crowding, the dumplings will come to the surface and float when done.   As they come to the surface, remove from the water with a slotted spoon and place on a plate lined with paper towels to drain. 

Continue until all the potato balls have been cooked.

 service:

Shred the sour beef roast and place it on a serving platter (or place the beef cubes on the serving platter), top with the potato dumplings and serve immediately accompanied by the warm ginger snap gravy.

* if you are using the roast rather than the cubes and would prefer sliced sauerbraten rather then shredded, the beef can also be cooked in a Dutch oven.  Preheat the oven to 325° F.  Place the roast in your Dutch oven along with the marinating liquid and the chopped vegetables, the bouquet garni, and the piece of ginger insuring that the liquid completely covers the roast (if it doesn’t add water so it does) cover and place in the middle rack of the oven and cook until tender, about 4 hours.  When the roast is cooked remove from the oven to a cutting board retaining the cooking liquid, cover with foil and allow it to rest for about 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes slice, plate the meat and continue to prepare the sauce.

Brooklyn Pizzaiola Steak Sandwich

Brooklyn Pizzaiola Steak Sandwich

makes 2 sandwiches

(America)

This spicy Italian steak sandwich definitely benefits from the low and slow cooking of the pounded strip steaks which after 3 hours of cooking end up being more melt in your mouth Italian pot roast than steak.  For a more steak  like consistency cook the steak in the sauce for only 1 hour.  No matter you chose to cook the steak serve this saucy sandwich accompanied by plenty of paper napkins.

Ingredients

4 beef strip steaks, about 2-inches wide x 1-inch thick x 6-inches long

2 tablespoons of butter

1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil

32 ounces tomato sauce

1 tablespoon white, cane sugar

2 tablespoons dehydrated onion flakes

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced

1 medium green bell pepper, cored, seeds remove, and roughly chopped

6 slices of fresh mozzarella

2 10-inch Italian hero rolls

Preparation

1.  Slice each strip steak in half into 3-inch long pieces.  Working with 1 3-inch steak piece at a time, place the steak piece in a 1 gallon re-sealable plastic bag and pound the steak into a ¼-inch beef scallopini; repeat until all the steak pieces have been pounded.

2.  In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat melt the butter in 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  When the butter is melted brown each of the beef  scallopini on both sides, about 10 minutes, and remove to a plate as they are browned. 

3.  Add the tomato sauce In the same sauté pan.  Stir in the onion flakes, granulated garlic, pepper flakes, the sliced onions, and the roughly chopped bell pepper.

   

4.  When the sauce begins to boil, return the sautéed beef to the sauté pan insuring they are covered with sauce.  Reduce the heat under the pan to low, cover and allow the beef and sauce to simmer, covered, for about 1 hour.

5.  After an hour, stir in the tablespoon of sugar and correct seasoning.  Allow the steak and sauce to continue simmering, cover, for an additional 2 hours.

6.  After the steaks have cooked for a total of 3 hours turn on the broiler of your stove.

7.  Slice two Italian hero rolls in half length-wise and place the 4 roll halves, sliced side up, on a rimmed cookie sheet.  Place three of the cooked steaks on the lower half of each of the rolls, spoon some of the sauce, onion, and peppers over the steaks and cover each steak and sauce covered sandwich half with 3 slices of fresh mozzarella.

8.  Place the cookie sheet under the broiler and broil until the mozzarella begins to brown. 

9.  Place the toasted hero roll top on the bottoms and serve immediately.

Sicilian Style Pot Roast

Sicilian-Style Pot Roast

serves 4

(Italy)

This is an Italian variation on the popular inexpensive American Sunday supper stand-by.  Made with an inexpensive, even  "cheap", cut of beef its secret is in the long, slow, low temperature treatment of the beef and  the mix of Italian flavours.  For the tomato sauce, I prefer to use canned, whole San Marzano tomatoes (that's a variety of Roma tomatoes imported from Italy and grown  on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius) which I crush by hand.  For the red wine I recommend a good, full-bodied Chianti  or Burgundy.

 

Ingredients

2-3 pound beef pot roast

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil plus 2 tablespoons

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 cup red wine

1 quart tomato sauce

1 quart beef stock (amount may vary)

Pinch sugar

Grated peel and juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup Kalamata olives, pitted and halved

2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley

Coarse Kosher or sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1.  Preheat oven to 350° F.

2.  In a heavy Dutch oven heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over moderate heat until hot but not smoking add the pot roast and brown on all sides. Remove pot roast to a plate.

3.  Add the ¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil to the Dutch oven and heat olive oil.   When the oil is hot add red pepper flakes and garlic and cook until aroma is apparent, DO NOT allow garlic to brown!

4.  Add wine, sugar, and tomato sauce, grated lemon peel and the olives to the pan and bring to a simmer.

5.  Add the pot roast to the sauce and add enough beef stock as to allow the liquid to come up 2/3 of the way up the beef.  Add lemon juice and chopped parsley to the sauce and check for seasoning.

6.  Bring the pot roast to a simmer on top of the stove, skim, cover tightly, and set in the lower third of a 350 degree preheated oven. Regulate heat so that the liquid remains at a gentle simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the beef is tender. Turn the roast over several times during its braising.

7.  Transfer roast to a cutting board and let stand 10 minutes, covered with aluminum foil to keep warm.  Slice roast to your preference and serve topped with the tomato sauce.  Polenta and crusty Italian or French  make excellent accompaniments as do oven roasted potatoes.

Next Week's Post:  Caponata alla Siciliana

Brasciole alla Sansevero (Italian Beef Rolls Sansevero)

Brasciole alla Sansevero

(Italian Beef Rolls Sansevero)

serves 6

(Italy)

When I was a kid, my mother's brasciole was an extra-special  Sunday treat; she would cook it in her Sunday "gravy" until the meat was butter soft.  Unfortunately she never wrote the recipe down so I developed this recipe from what I remembered.  I developed the sauce for it but I invite you to add the fried brasciole to your special Sunday "sauce" and create your own memories.

Ingredients

6 thin slices of round steak, flattened with a meat mallet to 1/8- 1/4 inch thick

1 pound ground veal, beef, or pork - OR - 2 cups dry Italian bread crumbs and 2 tablespoons of tomato paste

3 slices of bacon, diced grease reserved

2 cloves garlic, crushed

½ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 tbsp fresh oregano, finely chopped

1 shallot, thinly sliced

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup pine nuts

½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

2 eggs, beaten

Sauce
3 tbsp olive oil
2 large onions, diced
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1 28 ounce can of tomatoes, crushed
1 cup Italian flat leaf parsley, leaves picked and roughly chopped
½ cup basil, leaves picked and roughly chopped
1 cup red wine
2 cups water
Salt and pepper to taste
2 bay leaves

Preparation

the sauce:

1.  In a large sauté pan over medium heat sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil until softened but not browned.

2.  To the softened onions add tomatoes, herbs, red wine and water and leave to simmer over low heat while you prepare the brasciole.

the brasciole

1.  On a clean work surface, lay out beef slices flat.

2.  In a medium mixing bowl, combine the minced veal (or bread crumbs and tomato paste), the bacon, garlic, parsley, oregano, shallot, raisins, pine nuts, Parmesan, beaten eggs, and the reserved bacon grease.  Season with salt and pepper.

3.  Place a heaping tablespoon of stuffing mixture on each beef slice, spreading it out well.  Roll up the beef jelly roll style and secure with kitchen twine.

4.  Heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a separate sauté or frying pan over medium heat.  Brown the brasciole on all sides

5.  Place the browned brasciole in the sauce, cover and simmer for 1 ½ hours over low heat.

6. Working with one brasciole at a time and while keeping the sauce warm, remove a brasciole from the sauce to a clean cutting board; cut and remove the string, slice the brasciole into 1 to 2-inch thick "pin-wheels" and arrange the slices on a serving platter; continue until all the brasciole have been sliced.   Pour the warm sauce over the "pin-wheels" and serve immediately accompanied by crusty Italian or French bread.

Next Week's Posting: Pasta e Fagoli Basilicata (Pasta and Beans Basilicata)

Cincinnati Chili

Cincinnati Chili 

serves 4

(America)

Cincinnati-style chili is an enduring American classic that I first tasted in the Cincinnati  airport while on  a business trip.  Whether prepared two-way (chili over spaghetti), three-way (with cheese), four-way (with onions), or five-way (with a finishing flourish of kidney beans) it's an interesting twist on both chili and spaghetti.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/4 teaspoons granular garlic

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1 dried bay leaf

Kosher or sea salt, to taste

freshly ground black pepper,  to taste

2 cups tomato sauce

1 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup water*

4 cups finely grated cheddar cheese (optional)

2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped (optional)

1  15-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed  under hot water and drained (optional)

3/4 pound dried spaghetti

Preparation

1. In a large (12-inch) sauté pan over medium-high heat bring oil to the ripple stage.  Add garlic and half of the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 5–6 minutes. 

2.  Add beef and cook, stirring, until  it  begins to brown.  Add the chili powder, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, cumin, oregano, nutmeg, celery seed, bay leaf, and salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, 6–8 minutes. Tilt skillet and spoon out and discard any accumulated fat. 

3.  Add tomato sauce, cocoa powder, and water; bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, partially covered, until somewhat thick*, about 25 minutes.

4.  For a two-way, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat.  Add spaghetti and cook, stirring occasionally, until al  dente, 6-8 minutes; drain.

5.   Meanwhile, for a four way, heat beans in a small pot and cook over medium heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until hot throughout. 

6.  Divide spaghetti between 4 large bowls.  For a two-way, top each bowl of spaghetti with 1/4 of the chili;  for a three-way, top with cheese; for a four-way top each bowl  with some of the remaining onions; and for a five-way top with beans. Serve hot, with oyster crackers on the side.

*additional water can be added if chili is too "tight"

Gulyasleves (Hungarian Goulash)

Gulyasleves

(Hungarian Goulash)

makes 6 servings

(Hungary)

Just as there are  as many recipes for "Italian Gravy", tomato sauce to you non-Italians, so are there as many recipes for Goulash as there are Austro-Hungarian families.  This is a recipe I derived from combining the "best" of several "genuine" family Goulash recipes.  The secret to this or any other Goulash (or any stew recipe for that matter) is to cook the stew slow and low for a very long time  until the beef is "fall apart" tender.

Ingredients

2 pound  beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes

2 14.5-ounce cans of diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon. salt

2 large yellow onions, chopped

2 tablespoons lard or shortening

3 tablespoons imported sweet paprika (use real Hungarian paprika for the best flavour)

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

1 quart of  beef broth

4 peeled and diced potatoes

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

dumpling batter:

1 egg

6 tablespoon  flour

1/8 teaspoon of Kosher or sea salt 

Preparation

1.  In a large, heavy bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat sauté the chopped onions in the shortening until they browned.  Add the cubed beef sprinkling it  with 1/2  teaspoon of salt and continue cooking the beef until it  browns and is nicely caramelized.  Sprinkle the caramelized beef with the paprika and flour, stir.

2.  Stir in the 2 cans of tomatoes and their juices, the tomato paste,  the bay leaves, the black  pepper, and the red wine vinegar.  Reduce the heat to produce a slow simmer. Let beef simmer, uncovered  for 1 hour.

3.  Add the beef broth, the diced potatoes and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cover and simmer until potatoes are done and meat is tender. Prepare egg dumpling batter as follows:

4.  Mix together the  flour,  the  egg (unbeaten), and salt.  Let the batter stand for 1/2 hour

5.  Drop the batter, by the teaspoonful, into Goulash. After the  dumplings rise to surface, cover the pot and simmer 5 minutes until the dumplings are fully cooked.  Serve hot accompanied by sour cream to add in dollops to the goulash.

Chimichunga

Chimichunga

Makes 12 Chimichungas

(Mexico) 

Ingredients

2 pounds chuck beef roast

2 yellow onions

2 red bell peppers

2 green bell peppers

3 large tomatoes

1 tablespoon crushed garlic

12 large flour tortilla shells

Preparation

1.  Salt and pepper beef, place in a large   crock pot set to high, cover with water and cook until beef is tender and easily shreds, 4 to 6 hours.  Remove beef from cooking liquid and allow cooling enough to be handled comfortably.

2.  While beef is cooling slice peppers into thin strips removing seeds, peel and slice onions into thin rings, and seed and slice tomatoes into strips.

3.  When beef is cooled enough to handle, shred beef by pulling apart along the grain of the beef.  The finer the shred the better.

 4.  Heat 2 tbs. of oil in a large skillet or frying and add the peppers, onions, tomatoes, and garlic and sauté until they are soft and onions become translucent (not browned) adding salt and pepper to taste.

5.  When vegetables are sautéed mix beef into them.  Lower heat, cover and allow the beef to sauté with the vegetables for 10 to 15 minutes until beef has had an opportunity to absorb the flavours of the vegetables.

6.  Remove mixture for heat and allow cooling enough to handle.  When the mixture has cooled begin constructing the Chimichungas by laying a single tortilla in front of you, place approximately 1/12 th of the mixture in a line across the middle of the tortilla starting and ending about 2 inches from the edges.  Fold the edges of the tortilla in on to the mixture, fold the top of the tortilla over and roll the whole over again forming a roughly rectangular package (similar in look to a borrito).  Continue in this manner until all the filling and tortillas have been used up.

7.  Heat about ½ inch of oil in a frying pan.  Add the Chimichungas, one or two at a time (fold side down), to the heated oil and fry them until golden brown on top and bottom.  Drain on paper towels.

8.  Serve with guacamole, sour cream, salsa, and olives provided for toppings.

Diner Salisbury Steak

-->

Diner Salisbury Steak

makes 4 servings

(America)

As a transplanted "east-coaster" diners and their food hold a special place in my heart . . . the diner was one of the places where I could taste "American" food and, to an Italian American boy, Salisbury Steak was an exotic meal.  This is my homage to this diner specialty.

                                                                                                            prep time:             15 minutes

                                                                                                            steak cook time:    10 minutes

                                                                                                            gravy cook time:   8 minutes

                                                                                                            total time:            33 minutes

Ingredients

1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef

2 scallions, finely chopped

1/4 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs

1 tablespoon dehydrated onion

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 egg

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1 - 12 ounce can of beef gravy

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 tablespoons prepared,  grated horseradish

1/2 pound white mushrooms, cleaned, stems intact and thinly sliced

3 tablespoons of vegetable oil

4 servings of homemade or commercial mashed potatoes (prepared according to manufacturer's instructions)

4 servings corn niblets

Preparation

prepare the ground beef:

1.  In a medium bowl mix together the ground beef, scallions, bread crumbs, egg, dehydrated onions, garlic powder, and mustard and shape into four 1/2-inch-thick oval patties.

2.  Preheat oven to 120° F.

fry the steak:

1.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the patties for 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until no pink remains.  Remove from to a paper towel lined platter to drain and place platter with the Salisbury steaks in oven to keep warm.  Discard the oil in the pan and wipe clean.

2.  Return the skillet to the heat and add the gravy, the tomato paste, water, horseradish, and mushrooms and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender, stirring occasionally.

3.  Return the warm steaks to the skillet, lower the heat to low and simmer for another 2 or 3 minutes.

service:

To serve, place 1 steak, serving of corn, and 1 serving of mashed potatoes on each of 4 plates and place 1/4 of the mushroom gravy over each steak.  Serve immediately.

Spezzatino Rosso Italiano

Spezzatino Rosso Italiano

(Italian Red Stew)

serves 4 to 6

This is one of those meals that my mom would  make on  a  regular basis and which we, her kids,  never paid much attention to the recipe  for . . .  it was just always there.   When we were older and asked for a recipe, as with so many dishes  from an Italian-American kitchen  she would say "un po 'di questo e un po 'di quel" (a little  of this and a little of that).   This is my interpretation  of her non-recipe,  I  hope it does her honour.

Ingredients

1 pound beef stew meat
5 medium red potatoes, sliced into quarters and then each quarter in halves or thirds depending on the size of the potatoes 

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled  and chopped

1 large yellow onion, peeled and cut into  8 wedges

1 large celery stalk, cut into 1/4-inch crescents

1 cup baby carrots, cut into 1-inch  pieces

3/4 cup pitted, whole Kalamata olives

8 white mushrooms, quartered

1 cup beef broth

1 cup red wine

1 28 ounce can whole tomatoes (San Marzano if you can find  them), roughly crushed by hand

4 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

1teaspoon Kosher or sea salt

 Preparation

1.  Combine the flour, cayenne, black pepper, and the salt  in a large (1 gallon) re-sealable  bag, massage to evenly distribute the ingredients.  Add the stew meat and shake/massage to evenly coat the  meat.

2.  In a medium sized pot bring 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil to the ripple stage over medium high heat, add the stew meat from plastic bag and brown the meat thoroughly.

3.  When beef is  thoroughly browned, add the beef broth stirring  to incorporate the beef "bits" sticking  to the bottom  of the pot (deglazing).

4.  Stir in the tomatoes and the red wine.

5.  Add the onion, garlic, carrots, potatoes, and celery.  Stir to distribute. 

6.  Reduce the heat to achieve an even simmer, cover and continue cooking until the potatoes begin to soften, about 1 1/2 hours.

7.  Continue cooking  for an additional 1/2 hour until the carrots and potatoes are cooked through, add the mushrooms in  the last 15 minutes before serving.

8.  Correct seasoning and serve accompanied by grated Parmesan and crusty Italian or French bread.