While February can bring clear skies and warm temperatures
during the day, it is still winter. Days are short and nights are
often chilly: Perfect weather for a pot roast or stew.
These dishes work well for less-expensive cuts of meat such as
chuck roast or brisket.
While February can bring clear skies and warm temperatures during the day, it is still winter. Days are short and nights are often chilly: Perfect weather for a pot roast or stew.
These dishes work well for less-expensive cuts of meat such as chuck roast or brisket. While generic “beef stew” meat is also available, it’s better to choose one of these cuts and cut it up yourself so you’ll know what you’re getting.
These cuts can be fatty, and that adds flavor. Remove excess fat after cooking by skimming it from the surface of the liquid, or (much easier) by chilling the dish overnight and removing the congealed fat the next day.
With either one, serve a green salad or a winter fruit salad (such as grapefruit and avocado, or Waldorf salad) and crusty bread for soaking up the juices.
Basic Pot Roast
(adapted from the 1971 edition of the Joy of Cooking)
Serves 6
3 to 4 lbs. boneless chuck or brisket of beef
1 – 2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T. olive oil
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 rib celery, finely chopped
2 shallots or 1 small onion, stuck with 3 whole cloves
2 cup simmering meat or vegetable stock
whole peeled carrots: 1 or 2 per person, or a couple of handfuls of baby carrots
whole medium potatoes: 1 per person, cut into equal-size pieces
Step 1: Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
Step 2: Pat the meat dry.
Step 3: Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large oven-proof pan with a lid.
Step 4: Add the garlic and cook slowly for a minute or two. Do not let it brown.
Step 5: Increase the heat, add the meat and brown well on both sides. The browning will add a lot of flavor to the finished dish.
Step 6: When the meat is half browned, add the chopped carrot and celery.
Step 7: When the meat is browned, add the shallots or onion and the hot stock.
Step 8: Cover and bake for 2 to 3 hours. Add additional stock if necessary to keep the meat covered.
Step 9: During the last half hour of cooking, add the carrots and potato chunks.
When done, remove the meat and vegetables from the broth and skim the fat off the surface. You can serve the broth first, separately, or thicken it with flour mixed with a little water to make a gravy.
Boeuf Bourguignon
(Adapted from Time-Life Books Cooking of Provincial France)
Serves 6 to 8
Onions:
1/2 lb. salt pork or bacon, cut in small pieces
1 quart water
1 T. butter
18 to 24 peeled pearl onions
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 2: Blanch the pork or bacon to remove excess salt: bring the water to a low boil and add the pork for 5 minutes. Drain the pork on paper towels and discard the water.
Step 3: In a heavy skillet, melt the butter and brown the pork, stirring, until crisp and golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Step 4: In the rendered fat remaining in the skillet, brown the onions over moderate heat, stirring to brown as evenly as possible.
Step 5: Transfer them to a shallow baking dish that will hold them in one layer, sprinkle with 3 T. of the pork fat (reserve the rest of the fat) and bake them for about 30 minutes until barely tender.
Step 6: Remove onions from the oven and set aside.
Mushrooms:
3 T. butter
1 lb. fresh mushrooms, whole if small, quartered if large
Step 1: While the onions are baking, melt the butter in an 8 to 10 inch enameled or stainless skillet.
Step 2: When the foam subsides, cook the mushrooms, turning frequently, until slightly soft.
Step 3: Add the mushrooms to the cooked onions and set aside.
Beef:
3 lbs. boneless chuck or rump, cut in 2-inch pieces
4 parsley sprigs and 1 bay leaf tied together in a cheesecloth pouch
2 T. finely chopped shallots or scallions
1/4 cup very finely chopped carrots
3T. flour
1 cup hot beef stock
2 cups red Burgundy or other dry red wine
1 T. ketchup
1 tsp. finely chopped garlic
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 T. finely chopped fresh parsley
Step 1: Make sure oven is heated to 350 degrees F.
Step 2: Pour out and reserve almost all the pork fat from the skillet in which the onions browned, leaving a thin film in the pan.
Step 3: Over moderately high heat, bring almost to the smoking point.
Step 4: Dry the chunks of beef with paper towels, then brown 4 or 5 at a time to avoid crowding the skillet.
Step 5: Brown the chunks well on all sides.
(Time out for word of encouragement: this is tedious and time-consuming and messes up the stove. But adequate browning is the key to great flavor.)
Step 6: Adding more pork fat as needed, continue until all the meat is browned.
Step 7: As each batch is browned, removed to a 4 to 6 quart flame-proof enameled casserole. Bury the parsley and bay leaf in the meat.
Step 8: After all the meat is browned and placed in the casserole, put the chopped shallots or scallions and carrots in the remaining fat in the skillet and cook until lightly browned.
Step 9: Stir in the flour. If the mixture looks dry, add a little more pork fat.
Step 10: Stir over low heat until the flour browns slightly.
Step 11: Remove from heat, let cool for a moment, then pour in the hot stock and blend with a whisk.1
Step 12: Add the wine and ketchup and bring to a boil, whisking constantly as it thickens.
Step 13: Mix in the garlic, thyme, reserved pork bits, salt and a few grindings of pepper, and pour the sauce over the beef.
Step 14: Stir gently to moisten all the beef. The sauce should just barely cover the meat. Add more wine or stock as needed.
Step 15: Bring to a boil on top of the stove, cover, and place in the 350 degree oven.
Step 16: Let cook for 2 or 3 hours until the meat is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.
Step 17: Gently stir in the browned onions and mushrooms and bake 15 more minutes.
Step 18: Remove the cheesecloth bag and skim the fat from the surface.
Step 19: Taste and add salt or pepper if needed.
Step 20: Serve directly from the casserole, sprinkled with the chopped parsley. Broad egg noodles make a good side dish.
