beef & wine
Servings: 4
ingredients:
- about 750 g lean beef for roasting/stewing
- 1-2 onions
- 150 g Italian bacon (finely sliced)
- 1-2 cloves of garlic (optional)
- some olive oil for frying
- 2-3 carrots
- 100 g mushrooms (optional - replaced by carrots)
- 2 cans tomato purée (140 g)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 400 ml beef stock
- 400 ml red wine
- 3-4 bay leaves
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp ground sweet paprika
- salt & pepper
Equipment:
- frying pan
- a slow cooker
- hand blender (optional)
how to:
- Chop the onions & the thin slices of Italian bacon. Start frying for about 5 min in some olive oil. Add pressed garlic (optional). Add salt & pepper to taste. Transfer everything into the slow cooker.
- Chop the carrots & the mushrooms (optional) & put into the slow cooker.
- Cut the beef into pieces of about 3-4 cm & fry until slightly brown allover (in the same frying pan w/o cleaning). Transfer the fried beef into the slow cooker.
- Mix tomato purée w/ thyme, sweet paprika & sugar & pour into the slow cooker.
- Pour the beef stock & the red wine in the slow cooker.
- Add bay leaves.
- Start the slow cooker on high temperature for 4 - 5 hours.
- Discard bay leaves.
- Add salt & pepper to taste.
- If you like a smooth sauce just fish the beef out of the slow cooker. With a hand blender purée all the rest (liquids, vegetables ...) until smooth. (For this version I used no mushrooms, but more carrots.) Don't forget the final seasoning!
- Serve w/ roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, pasta, rice or just fresh baguette.
Storage:
- You may store the dish in your fridge for a week or so. You may also freeze it. Best approach: reheat in the microwave.