Beef Stew

One of the first cookbooks I ever received as a gift was Betty Crocker's Cooking Basics.  I must have been around 18 year olds and I was lucky that I was even able to boil water!  I couldn't make anything.

Fast forward 12 or so years and I love cooking and baking just about anything.  This cookbook was collecting dust and I had only made 1 other recipe out of it in the 12 years I owned it.

Josh wanted beef stew so I made the recipe a few times for him.  Since then we've adjusted the recipe and improved it.

Beef Stew


Ingredients:
1 pound of boneless beef tip or round roast cut up into slightly larger than bite sized pieces
1 tablespoon of olive oil
3 cups of water plus an additional 1 1/2 cups of water
salt and pepper to taste
3 medium carrots cut into 1 inch pieces
4 medium red potatoes cut into large bite sized pieces
1 green pepper cut in strips with seeds and membrane removed
3 stalks of celery cut into 1 inch pieces
1 small white onion cut into strips
1 dried bay leaf
1/2 cup of cold water
2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

1. In a large pot heat the olive oil over medium heat 1 minute, add the beef and cook about 10 minutes.  Stir a few times during cooking make sure that beef is evenly browned on all sides.

2. Add 3 cups of water to pot and salt and pepper to taste.  Heat until boiling and then reduce heat so that mixture is boiling gently.  Cover with lid and cook for 1 1/2 hours.  Beef will be tender.

3. Add carrots, potatoes, green pepper, celery, onion and bay leaf to beef mixture.  Stir well and add the additional 1 1/2 cups of water.  Cover and cook an additional 45 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

4. Make sure to remove the bay leaf.

5. In a small mason jar shake the cold water and flour until combined.  Stir into stew and heat over high heat.  Continue stirring and boiling until the stew is thick.