Sunday, January 20, 2013

Best Ever Beef Stew {gluten, dairy, egg-free}

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Its seems that forever I have been searching for a good bowl of beef stew, but have continued to be disappointed.  I figured I must not actually like beef stew so much since I can't seem to find a recipe I  like.  Until now!  My good friend Gina Shatney (of Gina Chicken) served me a bowl of her Beef and Barley soup - just one bite and I sighed a contented sigh, knowing I had found what I was looking for.  So of course I got her recipe, made a few minor adjustments (namely, taking out the barley) and cooked up an amazing pot of gluten-free beef stew for my family.   It was a hit from the youngest to the oldest at our table, so I figured I'd better share it with you.

As if a successful beef stew recipe wasn't enough, another surprising thing happened.  I needed to make a soup to bring to church for the fellowship meal.  I hadn't planned for this, but I found I had on hand the ingredients  to make this soup - except for the beef.  So I decided to make it anyway, but substitute ground beef for the stew meat.  And guess what?  It turned out great!  I do prefer the original version using beef from a roast, but the ground beef version is almost as good.  So if you're pinching pennies, or just don't have any stew meat on hand, try it with ground beef.  You'll be warmed and satisfied either way.

*Now because this is a beef stew, let's take a minute and talk about your beef options.  This recipe calls for about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of beef, and there are several options that will produce a great stew.  My favorite is to use leftovers from a brisket or from my new favorite crockpot roast.  I cook up a 3-pound roast and serve half for dinner, then shred the other half for this stew.  The shredded meat is perfect!  But if you didn't happen to have a roast earlier in the week, you could always go with cubed stew meat or a london broil cut into bite-sized pieces and browned in a skillet.  The third option, which I mentioned already, is ground beef.  Simply brown your ground beef in a skillet while you work on the rest of the stew, then add it to the stew after the ground beef is cooked through.

Now on to the recipe . . .

Beef Stew {gluten, dairy, and egg-free}

Note: As with most soups, the amounts given are approximate.  The measurements are listed to give you an idea of how much, but please, add or subtract as suits your taste and pantry supplies.

1 - 1 1/2 lbs beef, see note* above and choose from:
     leftover beef roast, shredded
     cubed stew meat, browned in a skillet
     ground beef, browned in a skillet
2-3 TBSP olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1-2 carrots, cut into small pieces
1-2 stalks of celery, cut into small pieces
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 TBSP dried oregano
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size cubes
2-4 TBSP red wine (red cooking wine if fine)
6 cups beef broth (if using store-bought broth, make sure its gluten-free and MSG-free)
15 oz. can tomato sauce

In a stockpot, saute onion, carrots, and celery in olive oil over medium heat until crisp-tender.  Add garlic and oregano and saute a few minutes more.  Add liquids (red wine, broth and tomato sauce) and bring to a boil.  Simmer for a little while to get the flavors into the broth.  Add potatoes and pre-cooked meat.  Simmer until potatoes are tender (about 15 minutes).  Serve on its own, or pair with some fluffy gluten-free biscuits.

This recipe is being shared at Inspire Me MondayMelt In Your Mouth MondayMotivation MondayMake Your Own MondayBetter Mom MondayGluten Free RoundupFat TuesdaySlightly Indulgent TuesdayWhat's Cooking WednesdayGluten Free WednesdayHealthy 2day WednesdayAllergy Free WednesdayCast Party WednesdayReal Food WednesdayWednesday Fresh FoodsWheat Free WednesdayWednesday ExtravaganzaFull Plate ThursdayDelightfully Inspired ThursdayFrugal Food ThursdayPennywise PlatterTasty TraditionsGluten Free FridayFoodie FridayFresh Bites FridayFoodtastic FridayFood on Friday






20 comments:

  1. This looks delicious. I found your site from the "Make ahead meals for busy moms" blog hop.
    http://www.countrifiedhicks.com
    http://www.facebook.com/countrifiedhicks

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  2. I've had similar issues trying to find a great gluten free stew recipe. I'll definitely be trying this one - thanks for sharing!

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  3. I'm making this recipe as we speak, except my beef stock in au naturale.

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    1. Oh good! It is freezing at my house today - I would love to eat this right now! I've got it on my plan for Friday 'cause I'm making a roast today and will use the leftovers for the soup on Friday. Wish I had some homemade beef stock!

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  4. Sounds like the perfect meal on a cold winter day!

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  5. I've never thought to add tomato sauce to my beef stew! We just had a crockpot full last night, so it'll be a couple of weeks before I make it again, but I am definitely going to add some to try it out, thanks!

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  6. looks like a wonderful meal for a snow day!! i love beef stew

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  7. This looks so delicious. It's cold here now and this would be something perfect for dinner :)

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  8. This sounds delicious! I'm going to add it to my menu plan for next Friday.

    Thank you for sharing your recipe at Motivation Monday. I love seeing gf recipes shared!

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  9. Visiting from Foodtastic Friday.
    Great-looking stew. I especialy like your idea for using leftovers.

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  10. Hi Paige,
    There is nothing better than a great bowl of Beef Stew on a cold winter day. Hope you have a great weekend and thanks for sharing your tasty recipe with Full Plate Thursday.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

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  11. i'm with everyone else - this is the perfect time for this dish. so simple, but so flavorful. and you can drink the rest of the wine that didn't make it into the dish!!

    thank you for sharing with us at the Wednesday Fresh Foods Link Up. I hope to see you again this week with more seasonal and real/whole food posts! xo, kristy

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  12. I made this tonight and it was a hit! So warm and comforting not to mention pretty easy. Thanks :)
    -Dana

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  13. How did you know I was thinking about making beef stew? Thank you for sharing your recipe with us on foodie friday.

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  14. Looking at red wine as an ingredient I actually really believe this is the best ever beef stew :)
    Thank you so much for sharing this at Wednesday Extravaganza - hope to see you there again this week with more of your deliciousness!

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  15. Its awesome when you take that bite and find everything you are looking for! :) L-o-v-e :)
    Thanks for linking up at our Gluten Free Fridays party! I have tweeted and pinned your entry to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! :)

    Thanks for linking back to the Gluten Free Fridays post!

    See you at the link up this week! We are having a special giveaway this week! Its a tote bag filled with some Gluten Free Allergy Friendly goodies!

    Cindy from vegetarianmamma.com

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  16. How many people will this serve?

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    1. I would say 4-6 people. I often serve it with my drop biscuits and a salad which helps it go farther.

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  17. Made this today - it is great! I left out the tomatoes for dietary reasons here, and it was still wonderful. Thanks!

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