Crock Pot Beef Stew.

I know it’s Meatless Monday but with all of the work and painting I’ve been doing in my house, I needed a good crock pot recipe for dinner that I could fix and forget about until I needed it.  This is a wonderful recipe that you can prepare for a big crowd by adapting the ingredient amounts or for an intimate family dinner. Perfect fall, chill-in-the-air kind of meal that warms  you right up.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of all purpose flour
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoon of olive oil
2.5 lbs of ground chuck (cut into chunks)
4 carrots, peeled and sliced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 cup of red wine
1 cup of beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste

Directions:

Place the flour, salt and pepper into a deep dish or ziploc baggie.  Add the meat and toss to coat.

In a pan over medium heat, add a tablespoon or so of olive oil. Once hot, add the meat and let brown on each side for about 5 minutes.  Remove and place in your crock pot, turned to low.  Then add your wine, broth and paste and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom bits.  Boil this mixture for about 3 minutes then pour over your meat in the crock pot.  Add your carrots, garlic and onions on top of the meat.  Cover and cook on low for 6- 8 hours or high for 4 -6 hours.  Season with salt and pepper before serving.

— Knead to Cook