Best Ever One Pot Beef Stew

I've copied the recipe directly from The Busy Baker website and every thing it says in the instructions worked out! I followed the directions almost exactly, except I forgot to put salt and pepper into the stew itself, so don't forget that (I salted the beef as I was frying it, but that was it). This could do with perhaps a bit of hot sauce. 

The other thing is, if you don't have red wine or don't want to buy some, you can use 1/2 cup of beef broth instead (in addition to what is called for later in the recipe). I used regular stock, not low sodium. The potatoes were medium — not big, not small. I didn't have two pounds of stewing meat it called for, actually a fair bit less, but no big deal.

Also, this was a bit overdone at three hours — it got a wee bit dry. Just watch it a bit for the last half hour. The last part of this recipe suggests frozen green beans. I happened to have fresh French green beans and threw in about a handful or so 20 minutes before it was all done and it was great. Not necessary, though.

Last thing: I do not have an oven-proof dutch oven, so I used a soup pot to prepare the whole thing, and at the point where it says to put the pot into the oven, I scooped and poured the whole thing into a roaster (my casserole dish wasn't large enough). An oven-proof dutch oven would be great!

Do serve with some chunky bread. I am not one to dip bread into anything, but, wow, this was good. I actually scooped out the last of the stew in the bowl!

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 pounds stewing beef
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 3 medium carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 2 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 3 cups low sodium beef stock
• 5 medium white potatoes, quartered
• 1 cup frozen green beans (optional)
• fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place a large Dutch Oven pot over medium-high heat and warm the olive oil in it.
3. Season the beef with salt and pepper and add to the hot pot, just so the beef covers the bottom of the pot (Don't overcrowd as this will prevent the browning process. Brown the beef in batches if necessary.).
4. Brown the beef pieces on each side just until they're beautifully caramelized, sprinkling the flour over the beef as it browns, about 1 teaspoon at a time.
5. Remove the beef from the pot to a plate after it has browned (don't worry about cooking it through at this point!) and add the thyme, smoked paprika, onions, garlic, carrots and celery to the pot. 
6. Stir the vegetables around to catch all the drippings left in the pot from the meat and add the beef back into the pot after the onions are almost translucent.
7. Add the red wine, the Worcestershire Sauce, and the tomato paste. Give everything a good stir and let the liquid cook down (it's important to let the wine cook off for a good 4-5 minutes before adding the other liquid).
8. Once the wine liquid has reduced for several minutes and it has thickened, add the tomato sauce, the beef stock and the potatoes.
9. Give everything a good stir, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pot.
10. Make sure the potatoes are nicely nestled into the liquid and add the lid to the pot. Place the pot in the oven at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 3 to 3 and a half hours.
11. Every hour or so, lift the lid of the pot and give everything a quick stir.
12. If you'd like to add the frozen green beans (they're totally optional and I only add them about 50% of the times I make this dish), stir them in during the last 30 minutes of cooking so they don't get soggy.
13. You'll know the stew is done after the allotted time has passed and the beef pieces fall apart when you touch them with a fork.
14. Serve in deep bowls with a piece of crusty bread for dipping, and a sprinkling of fresh parsley for garnish (if desired).