Braised Beef with Onions and Wine
from Toni Tipton-Martin’s Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking
New year.
It’s taken me a minute to figure out what I’m doing this year. I think I’m still in shock. Or maybe it is trauma. I’m trying not to be too radical on the internet, and I guess I’ve been taught to stay small. Scroll down for a delicious stew from Toni Tipton-Martin’s Jubilee if you don’t want to hear it, and feel free to skip leaving a comment if this isn’t for you.
New resolutions. And some holdovers.
Try to write more and update the blog more.
Try to use my purchasing power to support local farmers and agriculture.
Try to grow more food we can eat.
Try not to support the consolidation of power in our food supply.
Try not to support businesses that do not support their employees’ rights to unionize and fight for fair wages and contracts.
Try not to support tyrants and tyranny.
Try to support and promote the works of others who attempt same.
Protect as many as you can.
Do not write his name.
Let’s talk about food supply consolidation (#4) a moment.
Not shopping at any store owned by K**ger or a child of Albert is really hard. And once I go down the thought experiment path of how not to shop at them, then I have to ask myself if the alternatives are any better. Used to be we up here in the Pac NW had this store called QFC, and it used to be great, but now K**ger bought it, and also it sucks now. Fred Meyer is out now too, same two reasons. I’m looking into WinCo and Grocery Outlet (venture capital?) and Trader Joe’s (suppressing unionization efforts?), trying to see how I feel about those folks. Let me know in the comments if you have any thoughts or personal experience to share.
I’m going to reward myself with a custom t-shirt when I manage to go a month without giving my money to K**ger or A**zon.
Oh and Albertsons and Safeway are pretty awful, at least the ones near me are.
So Costco, farm store, co-op, Town and Country Market, and I’ll keep exploring other options.
Let’s talk cookbooks.
Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking: A Cookbook by
Toni Tipton-Martin, cookbook author, two-time James Beard Award Winner, Editor in Chief of Cook’s Country magazine, and I’ll be cooking with her for the next month.
Jubilee is a blend of history lessons, old recipes, and recipes adapted from history. Perfect for the home cook who likes to dabble in anthropology, or for all of us who may need a brush up on how rich the heritage of this country really is. And who built it.
Recipes range from Southern Soul, Creole, Afro-Caribbean, and African American.
Let’s make something.
Braised Beef with Onions and Wine
Adapted from Jubilee by Toni Tipton-Martin
This is a version of a beef bourguignon inspired by recipes from Mahalia Jackson, Edna Lewis, and yes, Julia Child, a version of which I have cooked previously for this site.
Ingredients
1 lb frozen pearl onions*
½ pound sliced bacon, cut into ¼” strips
2 ½ lbs beef stew meat or chuck cut into 1 ½” chunks**
2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
1 ½ teaspoons black pepper
4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon olive oil, if needed
2 yellow onions, halved and sliced
3 carrots, cut into ½” thick slices
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 lb cremini mushrooms cut into ¼” slices
1 bottle red wine
1 cup beef broth (or one additional cup of wine)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2-3 bay leaves
Minced parsley for garnish
Serve with mashed potatoes, noodles, or rice
*Tipton-Martin calls for fresh, but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Ina Garten says I can use frozen, so I’ll never peel another flipping pearl onion for a stew again. I only had 9 oz left of a bag, so in it went.
**I bought pre-cut stew meat which was in smaller pieces, and next time I make this I will buy chuck roast and cut it myself into larger chunks, closer to the 1 ½” recommended in the recipe. I think the larger pieces would be better, not to mention easier to brown.
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Heat a large Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until crip, about 7-10 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings in the pan.
Pat the meat dry with paper towels. Combine salt, pepper, and flour and toss the beef cubes with the seasoned flour to coat.
Back in your Dutch oven, turn up your heat a little to med-high heat. Add the meat to the pan in batches, being careful not to crowd the pan. Sear and turn beef until deeply brown on all sides. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside.
Turn your heat back down to medium, and add the sliced onion and carrots and stir until “tender-crisp” (not sure what that means, but I gave it about 3 or 4 minutes). Add a bit more oil if the pan seems dry, or deglaze with a bit of water or a splash of red wine or beef broth if the fond accumulating at the bottom seems like it is starting to burn.
After a few minutes, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Then remove veg from pot and set aside with the beef.
Add olive oil to the pot, then add your mushrooms and sauté until tender.
Return the beef, onions, carrots, and all juices that have accumulated in the pan to your Dutch oven.
Stir in your wine, beef stock, tomato paste, bay leaves, and thyme sprigs.
Bring to a simmer, cover, and move to your oven. Bake for 2 hours.
Stir in your pearl onions and bacon. Taste for seasoning, but go easy as flavors will continue to concentrate.
Continue baking for 1 hour, or until meat is very tender.
Remove and discard your bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Or don’t. Thyme sprigs in your dinner are like prizes in Kinder Eggs.
Before serving, sprinkle with parsley. Serve with mashed potatoes or noodles.
This was really good, even Luke said so. Made excellent leftovers the next day.
Hey I got some new lights. I think my food pics look better. If you think so too, thanks, I can feel your positivity just thinking it. If you don’t, you can keep it to yourself. Hugs to you either way.
Here’s my first attempt at drawing my dog. Drawing not my thing. But this is Chief Brody, and we got him in June, and he’s the stinking bestest boi, so I tried to draw him.
If I can manage to go 30 days not buying anything from A**zon or K**ger, Imma make myself a t-shirt to celebrate what I’m calling a “no-naversary” with this shitty drawing of my goodest bestest boi. And a rose dangling over him.
I’d post a real picture of him, but he’s not old enough to give his consent yet.
What no-naversaries will you celebrate this year?
See you all soon, and just remember, all your favorite children’s stories are about standing up to tyrants.
Citation
Tipton-Martin, Toni. Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking. Clarkson-Potter, 2019.