Beef Stew with Puff Pastry is an all-time favorite “Comfort Food” and here’s a recipe you’ll want to keep!
Beef stew is a lot of different things to a lot of people; some include grains like barley, while others include potatoes or even pasta… but the important thing is to get the beefy flavor just right and the only way to do that is to use good stock and good beef.
One of the best beef stews I ever made was after Christmas, when we had a bit of leftover beef tenderloin…oh my, it was to die for! But…that was a special occasion and an expensive cut of meat. Here’s a relatively inexpensive, but tasty recipe for good ole’ Beef Stew!
First, you’ll saute the onions, beef and celery. Then, add the broth, carrots and seasonings. Allow the soup to come to a boil, then, turn down the heat and add a flour slurry, to thicken it a bit. Continue to cook covered on low, until carrots are tender.
Meanwhile, make your puff pastry. I use store-bought, prepared pastry sheets and they work fine. If I were eating this everyday, I might consider making my own, but that’s not the case. So…roll out the thawed pastry sheets onto a lightly floured surface and cut them into fourths. Place the pieces of pastry on a lightly oiled and floured baking pan, coat them with an egg/water mixture and bake for 15 minutes.
Comforting beef stew with carrots, peas and sirloin topped with a puff pastry.
- 1 1/2 - 2 lbs. sirloin seasoned with salt and pepper and cubed
- 1/2 stick butter , or oil
- 1/2 large yellow onion diced
- 6 large carrots diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 48 oz. beef broth
- 1 cup red wine Merlot, Cabernet, Pinot Noir
- 1/2 small can tomato paste
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 cup sweet peas frozen or canned (drain if canned)
- 1 pkg. Puff Pastry from frozen aisle
- 1 whole egg
- 1 teaspoon water
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In large stockpot, melt butter; add onion and cook until tender
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Add seasoned, cubed beef to onions and allow to brown on all sides
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Add celery to stockpot and allow to cook for 5 minutes
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Add beef broth, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce, coriander and carrots; bring to boil; add tomato paste; cover and allow to cook for about 20 minutes, or until carrots are tender
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Reduce heat and add a flour slurry (3/4 cup water with 3 tablespoons flour; mix in a separate bowl and add to hot soup)
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Allow soup to simmer with no lid
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Season generously with pepper ; taste for salt
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Preheat oven to 400ºF
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Lightly oil baking sheet
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Unroll packaged pastry onto a lightly floured surface; cut pastry into fourths and place on baking sheet
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In a small bowl, combine egg and water; brush pastry dough with egg/water combination and place in oven. Bake for 15 minutes.
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When pastry has browned and soup has thickened, remove bay leaves from soup and ladle soup into bowl; top with pastry
- Beef stew usually consists of some potatoes, but I wanted to make a carb-free stew! If you use potatoes, simply peel and cube Yukon gold potatoes and add them when you add the carrots; you may have to add more beef broth, as potatoes absorb liquid.
- If you want to add pasta or barley, do so after the soup is done. Both will cook on a low heat in about 10 minutes.
If you like this recipe, you might like Lentil Soup, too!
