Short-Rib Beef Stew with Ale Recipe
Filed under Beef, Seasonal Favorites: Winter, Soup and Stew
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The debate didn't last long. "You could have used boneless beef short-ribs. You're paying for the bones when you buy them bone-in," my mother remarked in while we were all enjoying this wonderful stew. "It's better with the bones," my father and I replied, practically in unison. "Better flavor," dad added. "And then there's all that goodness from the marrow," said I. Mom, not willing to give in so easily, said, "these bones are too small, I can't see any marrow." At this point, dad and I put our forks down and focused our gaze upon her. "Mom, just because you can't see a hole in the bones, doesn't mean there's no marrow." "But they couldn't have cooked long enough for anything to come out." "They cooked for two and a half hours." "Okay. Nevermind."
And so it goes. Lest you think that my dad and I unfairly give my mom a hard time, tonight both of them pounced on me for not knowing who Falstaff was. "Shakespeare, Henry IV!," said they, rolling their eyes the way they do when they realize how little I, the daughter of two teachers, really know. By the way, my mother is right more often than not, though in this case I'll stand by our assertion that this stew tastes better, and is better for you, when cooked with the short ribs bone-in. This recipe is adapted from one in a recent Sunset Magazine. We used brown ale in place of the beer the original recipe calls for, and added carrots and turnips. We love turnips in stews, though they have their own unique, somewhat bitter flavor; you can easily leave them out.
Short-Rib Beef Stew with Ale Recipe
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Ingredients
1/2 cup flour
2 Tbsp hot paprika
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs, trimmed of excess fat
4 strips thick-cut bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 bottle (12 oz.) brown ale
1 can (14.5 oz.) whole peeled tomatoes, chopped and juices reserved
2 pounds Yukon Gold or russet potatoes
2 large carrots
1 pound turnips (optional)
Method
1 Preheat oven to 300°. Combine flour, hot paprika, smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper in a large bowl. Dredge the short ribs in the flour mixture.
2 In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, cook bacon until fat renders. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels and reserve. Pour off all but 1 Tbsp of the bacon fat from pot. (Do not pour down the drain or you will clog your drain when the fat hardens as it cools.) Add short ribs and brown on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
3 Chop reserved bacon and set aside. Transfer short ribs to a plate and reserve. Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pot and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the ale and, using a wooden spoon or spatula, scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Add tomatoes and their juices and reserved bacon. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to a boil. Return short ribs to pot, cover, put in the preheated oven, and cook two hours.
4 Peel potatoes, turnips (optional), and carrots, and cut into 1-in. pieces. Add to short ribs, cover, and cook until potatoes are tender and meat pulls away easily from the bone, about 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5 Spoon off excess fat (it helps if you have a fat separator
Serves 8.
Adapted from a recipe in Sunset Magazine
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Posted by Elise on Oct 21, 2007 and indexed Beef, Beef Stew, Short Ribs
The hot and the smoked paprika - the Spanish pimentón, right? -- sound gorgeous. I'd be tempted to make a horseradish and sour cream sauce for the side.