Beef Stew With Cumin Seed

Recipe Ingredients

2 cups	474ml	Unbleached - all-purpose
1 tablespoon	15ml	Dried thyme
1 teaspoon	5ml	Salt - plus extra to taste
1/2 teaspoon	2.5ml	Freshly ground black pepper - - plus extra to taste
3 lbs	1362g / 48oz	Beef stew meat - in 1" cubes
1/4 cup	59ml	Olive oil
1 cup	237ml	Dry red wine
1 1/2 cups	355ml	Homemade beef stock
1 cup	62g / 2.2oz	Canned crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons	30ml	Ground cumin seed
1 teaspoon	5ml	Chili powder
1		Bay leaf
8		White pearl onions - up to 12
6		Garlic cloves - - peeled and chopped
1/2 cup	73g / 2.6oz	Chopped Italian parsley - - plus extra for gar
1 1/2 cups	355ml	Green Sicilian olives

Recipe Instructions

Stir the flour, thyme, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper together in a shallow bowl. Turn the cubes of stew meat in the flour to coat well, shake off excess and transfer to a plate.

Heat olive oil in a heavy kettle. Add the beef cubes, a few at a time, and brown them well on all sides. As they are browned, transfer them to paper towels to drain.

When all the meat is browned, discard excess oil but do not wash the kettle. Add the wine, beef stock and crushed tomatoes; set kettle over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring and scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Return beef to the kettle, then add cumin seed, chili powder and bay leaf and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cover kettle and set it on the middle rack of the oven. Bake at 350F. for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally and regulating the oven temperature to maintain the stew at a steady simmer.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut an "x" in the root end of each pearl onion and drop them into the boiling water for 1 minute. Drain them and drop them into a bowl of cold water. When completely cool, drain and peel them.

After the stew has been in the oven about 1 hour, stir in the onions. Continue to cook the stew, uncovered.

After another 15 minutes, stir in the garlic, 1/2 cup parsley and the olives. Continue to cook, uncovered, until stew is reduced and thickened to your liking and beef is tender. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately.

The authors note that "depending on the rest of the menu, this stew seems Mexican or Mediterranean because it is hearty and intriguingly seasoned with cumin seed. . . "

From "The Silver Palate Cookbook" by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins with Michael McLaughlin.

Source:
Mrs. Leslie Hawker

Rating

Average rating:

7.2 (5 votes)

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