Greek-Style Beef Stew

Name: Greek-Style Beef Stew
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients: 700g beef for stew (i used 2 bone-in beef ribs of 350g each); 3 onions (about 350g); 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste; 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar; 150ml dry red wine; 2 canned tomatoes + 2 tablespoons of their juice; 4 cloves garlic; 3 bay leaves; 10 allspice berries; 4 cloves; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 2 pinches ground cinnamon; salt, black pepper; 2 tablespoons oil

January 28, 2014

Veal Meat Dishes Greek

Slow, slow food 😊

Stifado is a Greek stew with lots of pearl onions. This weekend I prepared this beef stifado, with small adaptations (I used beef ribs and regular onion instead of pearl onions). The result was an aromatic, sweet-and-sour stew (sweet from the spices and caramelized onion, and sour from the vinegar and tomatoes). It's made on low, low heat until the meat melts in your mouth 🤤 It's a symphony of flavors.

I used two super meaty Black Angus beef ribs (raised in Sibiu, without hormones and other artificial stuff, just grass-fed!), they were scheduled for a beef soup, but in the end I wanted something more aromatic and made stew.

Ingredients

700g beef for stew (I used 2 bone-in beef ribs of 350g each)
3 onions (about 350g)
1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
150ml dry red wine
2 canned tomatoes + 2 tablespoons of their juice
4 cloves garlic
3 bay leaves
10 allspice berries
4 cloves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 pinches ground cinnamon
salt, black pepper
2 tablespoons oil

Servings: 4-5

How to prepare greek-style beef stew

If using lean boneless meat, cut it into large cubes. If using ribs, leave them whole.
Heat the oil well in a wide pan. Add the meat and brown it well on all sides. Remove the pan from heat and add the crushed garlic and mix quickly until all the meat is coated with garlic and it starts to smell pleasant.
Drain the fat from the pan into a small cup, and transfer the meat with garlic to the pot where you'll simmer the stew.
Wipe the pan of garlic and other deposits with a paper towel and pour the fat back into the pan. Add the finely chopped onion and saute on low heat until golden and has a sweet smell (about 15 minutes). Stir occasionally.
Add the tomato paste and saute, still on low heat, for another 5 minutes to caramelize the paste a bit.
Add the spices (allspice, bay leaves, cloves, oregano, cinnamon) and stir. Deglaze the onion with vinegar and then with wine. Bring to a boil.
Pour this onion mixture over the meat in the pot. Add the tomatoes crushed with a fork, along with their juice. Shake the pot well to settle the contents. Cover with 3 cups of water. Season with salt and black pepper.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low (the stew should only gently simmer!!!) and cook with the lid half-on for 2 hours. Now, if the meat was fattier, you can degrease the stew by removing the fat from the surface with a spoon. Also taste the stew and if the sauce is a bit acidic, add 1-2 pinches of sugar.
After 2 hours remove the lid and simmer on low heat for another 1 hour. Check the meat, it should be tender (falling off the bone if applicable and a fork should go in very easily, it should simply fall apart into shreds). If it's not yet like that, continue cooking with the lid on (if the sauce has reduced too much) until the meat is super tender. For me, in 3 hours, the meat was done. If you used ribs, at the end remove the meat from the pot and remove the bones. Clean the meat of fat if necessary and either put it back whole in the sauce, or tear it into pieces.
Serve with rice or orzo, mashed potatoes, polenta or just fresh bread. It's good reheated.