Not Your Average Cafeteria Beef Stew

Nothing against cafeterias, but I think you get what I mean.

Beef stews can be bland or pasty or just plain uninspiring, but I promise you this one is anything but. Like most everything I make, it originated in one place, and over time and with adjustments, it came to be what it is today.

Stews and soups—or at least the type of ones I make—are very forgiving, which is good, because if I can avoid measuring, I will.

The recipe below is an approximation, so give it a go, and make your own adjustments to see what you like best. My preferred way of cooking this particular stew is to use the instant pot, but if you don’t have an instant pot, (I highly recommend you get one) you could certainly do it on the stove top and adjust for cooking time. This is also a great meal to freeze for a later date.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb of stew beef or ground beef (organic & grass-fed preferred)

8-10 oz mushrooms, destemmed & quartered (I usually use bella)

3-4 potatoes, depending on size (any kind you like)

4-5 carrots, peeled & chopped

28 oz crushed tomatoes

16 oz beef broth (I like Kettle & Fire when I don’t make my own)

small onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tbsp tamari

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp maple syrup (real maple syrup; not pancake syrup)

2 tbsp butter (real butter!)

Salt, Pepper to taste

1 tbsp oregano

1 tbsp thyme

*Optional: Chopped Kale or other greens

*I sometimes like to put greens in my bowl before serving the stew on top. This way, the hot stew wilts the greens.

DIRECTIONS: (instant pot)

1. Chop all your vegetables first and set aside.

2. If using ground beef, using the SAUTE setting, brown the meat before adding all the vegetables into the pot.

3. If using stew meat, put the meat into the pot first, topping with all the vegetables. (Can also use stew beef from the freezer if using the IP).

4. Once meat and vegetables are in the pot, add the broth, maple syrup, tamari, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, & butter. Sometimes I stir it together. Sometimes not.

5. Set to high pressure for 35 minutes.

6. Manual release and serve.

NOTES:

Omit onion and garlic if in the midst of autoimmune flare or if having migraines regularly. This stew may not be appropriate for you if you know you are sensitive to night shades. Also, fish sauce is my secret ingredient, but if you don’t have it, tamari (GF soy sauce) and Worcestershire sauce will be great. I recently had a bunch of san marzano tomatoes from the garden, so I roughly chopped those and used in place of the crushed tomatoes. So feel free to be super flexible here, use what you have, and it’ll be delicious.