Good slow-cooker recipes are great assets for our busy lifestyles, and the autumn usually starts the succession of these cooking escapades in our household. One of our favorites is this recipe for Beef Barley Stew. There are a couple of brands of beef stock paste that I can recommend such as Better Than Bouillon or Major brands.
If you can find beef stock paste, then just use two cups of beef broth instead of the two cups of apple juice. Happy cooking!
Beef Barley Slow-Cooker Stew: (Makes 12 cups) “Beef stock paste is a reduction of beef juices to paste form, and used instead of bouillon cubes.
Traditionally, one tsp of this paste mixed with one cup of water would make one cup of broth.
I use apple juice, and the juice from the tomatoes in this recipe instead of water because water has no flavour.
Ingredients:
680 g (1.5 pounds) beef stew meat
3 tablespoons canola oil
salt and pepper
2 medium onions, chopped;
one large carrot sliced lengthwise, then into half-inch pieces;
2 celery stalks, sliced into half-inch pieces;
8 to 10 garlic cloves;
3 tablespoons apple juice or apple cider;
8 medium mushrooms, quartered;
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped, fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons beef stock paste
1/2 cup pearl barley
1 - 798-ml can of diced tomatoes
2 cups apple juice or apple cider
1. Preheat a large pan over medium-high heat. In a bowl, toss beef pieces with two tablespoons of oil and season with salt and pepper.
When the pan is hot, add the other tablespoon of oil to the pan and brown each piece of meat without crowding the pan. You may have to brown the beef in two or three batches.
When each batch of meat is browned, transfer to the slow-cooker.
2. Turn off the heat to the pan and add the onions, carrot, celery, garlic and the three tablespoons of apple juice to the pan. Stir until the pan has cooled and the vegetables have cooked slightly, approximately one to two minutes. Transfer this vegetable mixture to the slow-cooker.
3. To the slow-cooker, add the mushrooms, rosemary, bay leaves, beef paste, barley, tomatoes and the apple juice.
4. Turn the slow-cooker on low and cook for approximately eight to 10 hours.
5. Remove and discard the bay leaves and then season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.
Chef Dez is a chef, writer, and host. Visit him at www.chefdez.com. Write to him at dez@chefdez.com or P.O. Box 2674, Abbotsford, B.C. V2T 6R4.