Fashionable Ox - a Beef Stew (Pinedo recipe)

I am continuing to try out some of Encarnación Pinedo's stews.  Today's is a beef stew, one that I would consider a "standard" European (really French, I think) style with an interesting historical direction. It is on page 39, and I love the name.

My Translation

My Redaction

2 1/2 pounds of beef

1/4 cup broth, any flavor

1/4 cup white wine

2 cans diced tomatoes (14.5 ounce cans)

1/2 pound ham, cubed (about 1/2-inch size)

8 ounces carrots

1/2 cup chives, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

1 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/4 teaspoon mace

1/4 teaspoon coriander

First cut the beef into cubes, about 1-inch on a side, roughly.  Place in a slow cooker, add the broth and the wine.

Cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours.

Cut the carrots into bite-sized pieces as needed. 

In a skillet, combine the tomatoes, ham, carrots, chives, and spices.  Bring to a slow simmer.  Cook about 30 minute or until carrots are tender, stirring occasionally.

Mix in the drained beef and serve.

Sauce before cooking

Sauce after cooking

Beef after cooking.  Just use the meat and discard the liquid.

My Notes

I had some pork broth in my refrigerator, so I used that with the meat.  

Pinedo specifies "especies finas", "fine spices", and this is the only recipe that calls for that mix.  I interpreted it as a medieval spice blend called "powder fines", which can contain any number of spices, such as pepper, cinnamon, cardamon, coriander, grains of paradise, ginger, nutmeg, and so on.  The basic idea is a savory (vs sweet) mixture even though it uses many spices I consider "sweet", as in "I expect to see them in cookies, cakes, etc."

In making my choices, I knew one of my guest tasters does not like cinnamon, so I avoided that.  Putting in two savory spices (pepper and coriander) and two sweet spices (mace and cardamom) seemed like a good combination without risking making the spice blend too strong and overwhelming the dish.

Notice that she didn't call for salt.  I believe that the ham is a good way to introduce salt into the stew.

I used small carrots, so I didn't cut them.  I wanted the look of the bright orange carrots as part of the stew.  

This was so simple to prepare.  I appreciated that because it was a busy few days and I could easily prepare all in advance.  In fact, after the meat and sauce were done, I cooled and stored them separately in the refrigerator overnight.  The day of the meal I reheated the sauce, added the meat, and let the whole stew slowly warm through on the stove.

There was no need to defat anything before reheating.  Most of that fat had been left behind when I took the meat out of the slow cooker.

The Verdict

I served it with shell macaroni on the side and a tossed green salad.  And wine!

Visually, the stew was appealing with its colors and shapes.

The meat was tender and everyone noticed that.  

The sauce was flavorful and the carrots were tender, too, but not mushy.  I really liked that.

The entire mixture was good with the meats, tomatoes, chives, and carrots all contributing to the taste experience.  I suggested that the spice blend was too strong and was quickly outvoted by the guest tasters.  No one wanted salt on it.

The stew was well-received.  When I had the leftovers the next day, I decided that spice mixture wasn't too strong, but I thought it was close to being so.  If this worries you, I would cut down on the pepper a little.  

Success!

The stew matches the tablecloth...