Lemony Beer and Rosemary Beef Stew

Wintertime is stew time.  A good stew warms you in places a roaring fire, or even a snifter of Armagnac can’t reach. Although, Armagnac is a step in the right direction.

I am an unapologetic carnivore and while I do love seafood, chicken and pork, when it comes to stew, my taste buds beg for beef.

Beef stew is boring you say?  Ok, let’s clear away the childhood visions of bland brown gravy and meat and throw in some flavors your stunted imagination may not think of when you think of stew.  Beer.  Rosemary. Lemon. Roaring fire. Red wine. Flaming libido.

Been married a while?  Sorry, guess I shouldn’t have mentioned flaming libido.  Didn’t mean to make you cry.  Have another brandy. There are better things in life than ….no, hell no, there are no better things in life!  But this stew comes close. You’re stuck, I can tell. Better leave the bottle.  Aside from this delightful recipe, brandy is the only consolation I can offer.

But back to stew.  By the way, why do we call it beef when the meat comes from cattle?  Why do we call it pork when the meat comes from pigs?  Blame it on the Normans who conquered Britain in 1066 and brought the French language to the English court.  French words like boeuf and porc took over.  French was the language of English royalty and the upper classes and English was the language of the peasantry until about 1450.  Even today the motto of the English Monarch is in French, “Dieu et Mon Droit.” God and My Right.

Did I say, ‘back to stew?”  Well, this time I really mean it!

Lemony Beer and Rosemary Beef Stew

3 lbs Natural Chuck roast, cut into 11/2 inch cubes

2 Cups beef stock (I use Bovril and water to make the stock)

4 Carrots, peeled and cut on the bias

12 Button mushrooms quartered (I use the brown ones)

1 Can tomato paste

1 16oz bottle of beer (I use English ale, and have also used Irish stout, but any beer will do)

1 Large onion, diced

9 Cloves garlic, smashed, hard ends removed

2 Large sprigs rosemary

Juice of one fresh lemon (I also added the lemon rind.  Use a regular cheese grater...saves time)

Salt and pepper as desired.

Olive oil for braising beef and vegetables

Heat oven to 275ºF

Let’s do it!

Add a few squirts of olive oil to a large frying pan and braise the beef in three batches, adding salt and pepper to each batch, as desired. As each batch is braised, toss it into a large bowl.

Use a cup of beef broth to deglaze the pan and pour it over the beef. Let the beef rest while you braise the vegetables, except for the mushrooms.  Use a stew pot to braise the vegetables. About a 3 minute braise.

Put the stew pot on the stove, add the beef, the second cup of beef broth, the mushrooms, the beer, tomato paste, and lemon juice. Stir and bring to a boil.  Toss in the sprigs of rosemary. Don’t bother to pull off the leaves, they’ll come off in the cooking.

Cover the stew pot and slide it into the preheated oven.

I let my stew cook for about 4 hours, but you may not have to wait that long.  When the meat is ‘fall apart tender,’ the dish is ready to please your friends, confound your enemies and rebrand the cold winter as a time of pleasure.

It’s at this point I made mashed potatoes and opened a bottle of dark red Rioja wine.  I let it breathe for 30 seconds before I was overcome by an unrelenting thirst.

Not still thinking about the libido?  Well, I’ve done my job.