Beef stew with red wine

During the cold winter evenings, a hearty rustic beef stew is precisely what you need. It will not just warm your body but also be a comfort to your soul. The beef is deliciously succulent and rich, which is complemented by the sweetness of the carrots.

Using a Crockpot or slow cooker

Before I had a slow cooker, I never quite understood the fuss people made about it. My parents would put pots and pans “in the bed” there to be covered by as many blankets as we could find. Then a couple hours later, the food would be ready. And I still do this from time to time, especially when I need to cook larger quantities than I can fit into my slow cooker. But the ease of the slow cooker wins the day when it comes to most dishes.

How long to cook

Like this stew, I can turn it on in the morning and immediately go on a hike with the kids. No need to wait till it comes to a boil, or to heat it back up after it has been “in the bed”. For this stew recipe and many other dishes that would normally have to be babied all afternoon while they bubble away. The rule is that on high the slow cooker needs about 5 hours, and on low needs about 10 hours.

Is the order important?

If you want everything to be nice and tender, I would also advise making sure that you place things like your carrots on the bottom of the slow cooker since they tend to need longer to cook. Since the bottom gets the most heat for the longest time, it will result in tender carrots without having mushy potatoes. Also, make sure to not overfill your Crockpot by leaving at least an inch or centimeter or 2 below the rim.

Browning your meat

Browning your meat is very important if you cook a meal in a slow cooker or Crockpot. Because when you make a stew in a regular pan, you start off by browning your beef in some butter or oil. But you can’t brown your meat in a Crockpot, so you must do so in a separate skillet. For in order for the Maillard reaction to occur and that mouthwatering flavour to be unlocked you need a good strong heat.

Therefore I heat up my cast iron skillet and add a little knob of butter. Then making sure to not overcrowd the pan, I add the beef and quickly sear it and make sure it turns a lovely brown. Then it can be added to the slow cooker together with the other ingredients.

Red wine in the beef stew

Now to start off, I should say that I didn’t use red wine but elderberry mead. In case you don’t know what mead is, it’s simply a wine made from honey instead of grapes. This elderberry mead tasted similar to a slightly sweet red wine, although since it’s made from elderberries, it is slightly different.

But since I have elderberry mead in the pantry and I would have to go to the shops for red wine, I prefer to use my mead. We brew our own mead in our home and found it easier than initially thought. If you want to learn about some brewing basics, then read my post on how to make mead. If you would like some mead recipes from us, then let me know in the comment.

What if you don’t want any alcohol

Although red wine can be a delicious addition to a beef stew, for deepening the flavours it is not mandatory. If you prefer to not use wine in your cooking then simply leave it out use beef stock instead.

Or if you do want the flavour but not the alcohol you can use some alcohol free wine. Because even though the alcohol evaporates you might not feel comfortable with it. While I was pregnant, I used 0% wine for my cooking. Even though the flavour tends to be slightly less full bodied it is a good option if you avoid alcohol.

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