Slow cooked beef stew
Tender fall-apart beef stew in a rich, oven braise short sear + low heat turning connective tissue silky.
This recipe is part 5 of the Autumn Warmers series: slow, gentle, restorative cooking for colder days.
Mine ended up being in the oven just under 3 hours because I only had 500 g of diced chuck beef, and it turned out incredibly tender and tasty. Even the little connective tissue it contained was cooked nicely, too.
Note: You don’t necessarily need to use a Dutch oven; any heat-resistant casserole pan with a lid works just as well.
Why it works: A short stove sear + long, moist oven heat melts collagen into gelatin (silky body) and softens connective tissue without drying out the lean. Flour lightly thickens in-pot so you get a glossy stew without separate roux.
Serves: 2 Prep: 15 min Cook: 2¾–3½ h Total: ~3 h
Ingredients
1–2 tsp ghee or olive oil
1 red onion, diced (white works too)
2 celery stalks, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
3 medium carrots, chunked
1 large parsnip, chunked
500 g diced beef (chuck/brisket/shin)
2–3 tbsp buckwheat flour (or plain flour) for dredging
1 tbsp tomato purée
700 ml beef (or veg) stock
1–2 bay leaves
Sea salt & black pepper
Small bunch of parsley, chopped
Optional depth: 100 ml red wine or 1 tsp Worcestershire
Polenta: 80 g quick polenta + 320 ml water (4:1), 10 g butter, 15–20 g grated parmesan/pecorino
Method
Heat oven to 160 °C.
Sweat aromatics: Warm ghee/oil in a Dutch oven (or any lidded casserole). Fry onion + celery 2–4 min until translucent; add garlic 1 min.
Dredge beef: Pat beef dry; toss with seasoned buckwheat flour.
Build the pot: Tip in carrots, parsnip, tomato purée, bay, beef, and stock (plus wine if using), and season generously with pepper and a little salt. Stir.
Braise: Bring to a gentle bubble, cover, then oven 2½–3½ h, until the meat yields to a fork. Start checking at 2¾ h.
Finish: Rest 10 min. Adjust salt, crack pepper, and fold through parsley.
Serve with polenta, mash, or warm bread.
Substitutions & tips
Cuts: Shin, chuck, brisket all shine; avoid very lean steak.
Gluten-free: Use buckwheat or GF flour for dredging.
Veg swap: Add mushrooms or a handful of peas for the last 10 min.
No oven? Simmer covered on the lowest hob setting 2½–3 h (heat diffuser helps).
Brighter finish: A splash of red wine vinegar or lemon at the end lifts richness.
Storage
4 days chilled; 3 weeks frozen. Even better the next day; reheat gently with a splash of stock.
Read next
The original story behind the recipe:
https://www.saltpepperstories.com/p/musings-a-walk-and-a-little-beef
The method behind the recipe:
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xx, Ana