Ingredients

• 1 (3 1/2 pound) chuck roast, boneless
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 4 oz pancetta, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 2 medium onions, chopped medium (about 2 cups)
• 2 medium carrots, chopped medium (about 1 cup)
• 2 ribs celery, chopped medium (1 cup)
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 3 medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1/2teaspoon sugar
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 (750 ml) bottle Zinfandel wine (can substitute Cabernet Sauvignon)
• 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes , drained
• 1 sprig fresh thyme leaves , plus 1 teaspoon minced leaves
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 10 sprigs fresh parsley leaves

Method

1 Prepare the roast by cutting it in two along a major seam. Use a knife to remove large pieces of fat from each piece, leaving thin layer of fat on meat. Season the pieces on all sides with salt and pepper. Put the two halves back together and tie with kitchen twine to keep it from falling apart.

2 Adjust oven rack to middle position; pre-heat oven to 300F. Pat beef dry with paper towels. Place pancetta in 8-quart heavy-bottomed Dutch oven. Cook pancetta over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to paper towel-lined plate and reserve. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from the pan. Place pan over medium-high heat. Heat until the fat begins to smoke. Add beef to pot and cook until well browned on all sides, about 8 minutes total. Transfer beef to large plate; set aside.

3 Reduce heat to medium; add onions, carrots, celery, and tomato paste to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften and brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, sugar, flour, and reserved pancetta; cook, stirring constantly, until combined and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine and tomatoes, scraping bottom of pan with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits; add thyme sprig, rosemary, and parsley. Return roast and any accumulated juices to pot; increase heat to high and bring liquid to boil, then place large sheet of foil over pot and cover tightly with lid. Set pot in oven and cook, using tongs to turn beef every 45 minutes, until a fork easily slips in and out of meat, about 3 hours.

4 Remove from oven and transfer beef to cutting board; tent with foil to keep warm. Allow braising liquid to settle about 5 minutes, then, using wide shallow spoon, skim fat off surface. Add minced thyme, bring liquid to boil over high heat, and cook, whisking vigorously to help vegetables break down, until mixture is thickened and reduced to about 3 1/2 cups, about 18 minutes. Strain liquid through large fine-mesh strainer, pressing on solids with spatula to extract as much liquid as possible; you should have a couple cups strained sauce. Reduce sauce further until you have 1 1/2 cups. Discard solids in strainer. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.

5 Remove kitchen twine from meat and discard. Using chef’s or carving knife, cut meat against grain into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Divide meat between warmed bowls or plates; pour about 1/4 cup sauce over and serve immediately.

Serves 6.

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lbs chuck roast, cut into 1-inch pieces
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 3 medium yellow onions sliced about 1/4 inch thick (about 8 cups)
• 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken or beef broth
• 1 1/2 cups (12 oz bottle) Belgian beer
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp whole grain mustard
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar

Method

1 Pat beef dry with paper towels, then season well with salt and pepper. On the stove top, heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large heavy bottomed dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot, almost smoking. Working in batches, brown the meat, without stirring, about 3 minutes on each side (do not stir, give the meat an opportunity to brown well). Transfer browned beef to a separate bowl.

2 Add 2 tablespoons butter to dutch oven; reduce heat to medium. Add the onions and 1/2 teaspoon of salt; cook until onions are browned, about 15 minutes. Add flour and stir until onions are evenly coated and flour is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in broth, scraping pan bottom to loosen browned bits; stir in beer, thyme, bay, browned beef with any of the accumulated juices, and salt and pepper to taste. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a full simmer. Reduce heat to low, partially cover, let cook for 2-3 hours until beef is fork tender. (Alternatively can cook in the oven at 300F.) Stir occasionally, scraping up anything that is sticking to the bottom of the pan. About half an hour before it finishes cooking, add the mustard and brown sugar. Adjust seasonings to taste.

3 Discard thyme and bay leaf. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste and serve. Can serve plain, with potatoes, over noodles, or over French fries.

Serves 6.

Whatever ale you have used in the cooking makes for a great drink accompaniment to the stew.

Ingredients

• 12 ounce bag egg noodles
• 1 medium white onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 bell pepper, seeded, ribs removed, chopped fine
• 3 minced clove of garlic
• Grapeseed oil or olive oil for sauting
• 1 1/2 pounds ground round beef
• Salt
• 4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 28-ounce can tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn (can use canned corn or creamed corn)
• 1 15-ounce can of black olives, strained and chopped
• 1 pound cheddar cheese, grated

Method

1 Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the egg noodles.

2 Heat 2 Tbsp of oil on medium high heat in a large, heavy bottomed pot. Add the onions and bell pepper and saut until softened. Add garlic and cook for a minute more. Add the tomatoes, breaking them up with your fingers or a knife, if you are using whole canned tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and let cook for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to warm.

3 In a separate skillet, heat to medium-high. Add a couple of tablespoons of oil to the pan and brown the meat, working in batches. Break up about half of the ground beef into the pan. Do not stir, but let sit and cook for a minute or two until brown. Sprinkle a little salt over the meat while cooking. Once brown on one side, stir the meat a little to get the other sides browned. Once the meat is thoroughly browned, use a slotted spoon to remove the meat from the pan and put it in with the tomatoes, onions, and peppers. Brown the second batch of ground beef the same way.

4 Using the same pan that you had used for browning the beef, saut the mushrooms in the remaining oil and beef drippings. Once browned, add the mushrooms to the beef and tomato mixture.

5 While the mushrooms are cooking, add the egg noodle pasta to the boiling water. Cook as directed, about 4-5 minutes. Strain when cooked, but still a little firm (al dente).

6 Add egg noodles, corn, chopped olives, and about two thirds of the cheese to the large pot of beef and tomato mixture. Gently mix in.

7 Transfer mixture to a large casserole dish, or to two casserole dishes if you don’t have one that is large enough. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of casserole(s). Place in the oven. Cook for 30 minutes (can go as long as an hour).

Serves 8.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 1/4 pounds well-marbled chuck beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieces (NOT extra-lean)
• 6 large garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
• I cup of Guinness beer
• 1 cup of fine red wine
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
• 3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 7 cups)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cups 1/2-inch pieces peeled carrots
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Method

1 Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Lightly salt the beef pieces. Working in batches if necessary, add the beef (do not crowd the pan, or the meat will steam and not brown) and cook, without stirring, until nicely browned on one side, then use tongs to turn the pieces over. Continue to cook in this manner until all sides are browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saut 1 minute. Add beef stock, Guinness, red wine, tomato paste, sugar, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, then cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

2 While the meat and stock is simmering, melt butter in another large pot over medium heat. Add potatoes, onion and carrots. Saut vegetables until golden, about 20 minutes. Set aside until the beef stew in step one has simmered for one hour.

3 Add vegetables to beef stew. Simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Tilt pan and spoon off fat. Transfer stew to serving bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. (Can be prepared up to 2 days ahead. Cool slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate. Bring to simmer before serving.)

Serves 4 to 6.

Ingredients

• 1 pound top sirloin or chuck steaks (about 1/2 inch thick), trimmed
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• Olive oil, grapeseed oil, or canola oil
• 2 medium bell peppers, one red, one green, sliced into 1/4-inch strips
• 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced lengthwise (root to top)
• A dozen cherry tomatoes, cut in half, or one large tomato, roughly chopped
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Method

1 Season the steaks with salt and pepper and rub minced garlic over them, both sides. Place the steaks between two sheets of plastic wrap. With a meat pounder, pound the steaks to a 1/4 inch thickness. Let the steaks sit for 10 minutes to absorb the flavor of the garlic. Then cut them across the grain in 1/2-inch wide strips.

2 While the steak is sitting, heat 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet on medium high to high heat. Add the sliced onions and bell peppers, cook, stirring, until just barely tender, about 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute. Remove the vegetables from the pan to a bowl and keep warm.

3 Heat an additional 2 Tbsp of oil in the skillet on medium high to high heat, until the oil is shimmering, but not smoking. Add the strips of beef let the beef brown initially, without stirring, but as soon as it is brown on at least one side, then stir. Cook for no more than a minute (for rare). Add the vegetables and Worcestershire and cook for a half minute longer, stirring. Remove from heat.

Serve alone (low carb), or with steamed rice. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

• 3-4 lbs oxtails, patted dry
• Salt and pepper
• 2 onions, peeled and quartered
• 2 carrots, cut into 1-inch sections
• Zest of one orange, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 4 quarts water
• 1/3 cup fresh cranberries
• 10 oz mushrooms, chopped coarse
• 3 ribs celery, cut into 1-inch sections
• 4 sprigs of thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cloves
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 450F. In a large roasting pan combine the oxtails, patted dry and seasoned with salt and pepper, the onions, the carrots, and the zest. Roast mixture in the middle of the oven, turning the oxtails are browned, and transfer it to a large stockpot.

2 Deglaze the roasting pan with the wine over high heat, scraping up the brown bits, and add the deglazing liquid to the stockpot with the water, cranberries, mushrooms, celery, thyme, bay leaf, cloves, and peppercorns. Bring the liquid to a boil, skimming the froth, and simmer gently, uncovered, for 3 hours.

3 Ladle the mixture through a sieve lined with a rinsed and squeezed kitchen towel into a large bowl. Reserve the oxtails for another use, such as oxtail pate. Discard the remaining solids. The bouillon can be made 3 days in advance and kept chilled. Discard excess fat (leave enough to cover soup when chilled). Bring the bouillon just to a boil and ladle it into warmed bowls.

Makes 8 cups. Serves 6 to 8.