hearty herdbeast stew

Yesterday I mentioned that I was going to make Hearty Herdbeast Stew... which used to be on very high rotation as one of my specialties... and it's also one of the few recipes that actually comes out of a book. Granted, the book in question is The Dragonlover's Guide to Pern by Jody Lynn Nye with Anne McCaffrey...

Yeah, I know, it's never anything simple or usual with me, is it.

I was a big fan of McCaffrey's Pern books when I was younger (actually, all of her books, but there's more of the Pern ones than any of the others), although I will admit that I've kind of gotten over most of her stuff in later years, especially since she started doing all her books in conjunction with other people. But back in the day I was a big fan.

So when I saw the DLG, I had to have it, and when I realised there was a recipe in it for Herdbeast (cow basically) Stew, well, I just had to try it. And it's also suprisingly good, so it ended up in fairly regular rotation for a while.

Like with just about everything I make regularly, I don't always bother stick to the recipe anymore... like the fact that I don't bother peeling most of the vegetables, or I use multiple small potatoes instead of two big ones. Other than that I pretty much stick to it, since it's not really that complicated. It is good "fill you up" warming winter food though.

Hearty Herdbeast Stew

300g herdbeast (beef) cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 garlic clove (if desired)
1 small onion
1 can tomatoes in their own juice
1 cup water
2 potatoes, peeled
1-2 carrots, sliced
1 rib celery, sliced into 1-inch pieces
1 can corn kernels, drained
1-2 bay leaves
salt & pepper
dry mustard
garlic salt
parsley

Dredge the pieces of meat in flour until coated. Melt the butter in a saucepan, and when bubbly, add the meat, browning the pieces on all sides before sprinkling with salt and pepper. Add the onion and garlic and cook until transparent, then add the tomatoes and cup of water. Break up the tomatoes with a spoon, then add the potatoes, bay leaf, carrots, and celery.

Bring the mixture to a boil, cover, reduce to a simmer, and let cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn, spices to taste. Bring the stew to a boil again, cover, and return to simmer. Cook for 15-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until corn, potates, and meat are all tender.

Uncover and cook for 15 or so minutes until stew is slightly thickened, remove bay leaves and serve.

Current Mood: