Greek Beef Stew Recipes

GIOUVETSI RECIPE (GREEK BEEF STEW WITH ORZO PASTA)

Steps:

• Pat dry your Giouvetsi meat with paper towels.
• Heat 1/2 of a cup of olive oil into a pan, add the chopped onions and carrots and sauté for 5 minutes in medium-low heat. Turn up the heat and add the veal; brown the meat on all sides until crusty.
• Stir in the tomato paste, sauté for a minute then pour in the red wine. Wait for the wine to evaporate. Add the tinned tomatoes, the sugar, the cinnamon stick and a good pinch of salt and pepper and enough water to cover the meat.
• Turn the heat down and simmer with the lid on for about 45 minutes or until the beef is tender and fully cooked. Occasionally stir and top up with water if the sauce starts to dry out.
• In the meantime, heat another pan, add 3 tbsps of olive oil and the orzo pasta and sauté, until golden.
• Once your meat is done simmering, place the orzo pasta in an oven tray along with the meat and sauce (remove the cinnamon stick) and mix.
• If needed, add enough water so that the pasta is just covered. As a rule of thumb you'll need about 3 cups of liquid for 1 cup of orzo pasta.
• Cover the tray with some aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven at 180C for 30 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil, add a splash of water if it has dried out, and put back in the oven for another 15 minutes.
• To serve, sprinkle with some grated kefalotyri or any hard yellow cheese and enjoy!

GREEK STYLE BEEF STEW IN A TOMATO SAUCE (MOSHARI KOKKINISTO)

Steps:

• To prepare the reddened Greek beef stew, start by cutting the beef into pieces, approx. 100g/ 3.5 ounces each one. Wash thoroughly the beef and wipe with some paper towel. It is important to dry the meat well, in order to be nicely browned.
• Heat a large, deep pot to high heat. After the pan is heated, pour in the oil along with the beef. Brown the pieces of beef on one side, without stirring and then brown them on the other side. Try not to overcrowd the bottom of the pan. Browning the beef is very important, when cooking a Greek beef stew, as it helps the meat remain juicy and tender.
• Use a slotted spoon to remove the pieces of meat from the pot and place them on a plate.
• To prepare the sauce for the Greek beef stew, add into the pot the chopped onions and turn the heat down. Sauté for 3 minutes, until softened. Stir in the garlic and saute for 1 more minute. Pour in the red wine, turn the heat up and cook for 2 minutes, until it evaporates. Add the chopped tomatoes, the tomato paste (dissolved in a teacup of warm water), the cinnamon stick, the cloves, a pinch of sugar and salt and pepper.
• As soon as the sauce comes to the boil, add the beef and enough hot water to cover the 2/3 of the meat. When the sauce starts to bubble a lot, turn the heat down and half-cover with the lid (the sauce still has to bubble a little bit). Cook to medium-low heat, for about 1 1/2 hour, until the meat is tender and the sauce thickens, stirring occasionally.
• If the meat is tender and cooked, but the sauce is not thick enough, remove the pieces of meat with a slotted spoon and boil the sauce alone to high heat, until it thickens. On the other hand, if the sauce becomes thick, before the meat is done, then add some warm water.
• When done, boil the spaghetti into another pot, according to package instructions; drain and place in the pot, along with the sauce and the meat. Stir with a wooden spoon.
• Serve the Greek beef stew with a drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle some grated cheese and enjoy over a glass of red wine.

BEEF STIFADO RECIPE (GREEK BEEF STEW)

Steps:

• To prepare this delicious Greek beef stifado recipe, heat the oil in a saucepan, add the meat (in batches) and sauté, until browned on all sides. Do not add all the meat in the sauce pan, rather sauté in batches, so that the temperature of the oil remains high and the meat is sealed. When done, remove with a slotted spoon, place on a platter, cover and set aside.
• Peel and carve the baby shallot onions crosswise, add in the same oil used to browned the meat, turn down to medium heat and sauté until the onions have softened, but not browned (about 10 minutes).
• Pour in the cognac, the wine and red wine vinegar, cover and let it simmer for 3 minutes.
• Pour the meat along with its juices to the saucepan, add the tomato paste and sauté. Add the chopped tomatoes, bay leaf, allspice berries, nutmeg and a bit of water until the meat is covered. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer the beef stifado with a lid on for 1 1/2 hours or until the beef is tender and the sauce has thickened. While the beef stifado is simmering, check if it needs some water; you don't want it to dry out. If it does, pour in half a cup of boiled water and stir. Towards the end of cooking time season well with salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve beef stifado with pasta and grated cheese, or boiled new potatoes. Enjoy!

GREEK-STYLE BEEF STEW (STIFADO)

Steps:

• Place beef in a bowl and season generously with pepper and kosher salt. Cover and transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use; up to 1 day is fine.
• Leaving the root ends in place, cut off the shallot tops. Remove and discard skins.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy skillet over high heat. Add ½ of the beef and cook until nicely seared, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and repeat to sear remaining beef.
• Turn off the heat and add 1 tablespoon oil to the empty skillet. Add shallots and let the skillet cool for 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the heat back on to medium and toss shallots until browned, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove shallots to a plate.
• Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the skillet with onion, garlic, and a pinch of salt; cook and stir for about 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and cook until toasted, about 2 minutes. Add red wine vinegar and white wine and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Increase heat to medium-high and add sugar, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, oregano, bay leaves, and rosemary sprigs. Stir to combine and cook until reduced by about half, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add browned beef and shallots to the skillet and toss carefully until coated. Pour in 2 cups beef broth and bring to a simmer.
• Reduce heat to low or medium-low. Cover and cook at a gentle simmer for 1 hour, then uncover and cook for at least 1 more hour, stirring occasionally to move the beef and shallots around. Add more broth if needed during the cooking time and skim off some fat if preferred. The meat is done when a fork slides in easily, but the meat isn't falling apart on its own; it may take longer than 2 hours.
• Taste and adjust seasonings before serving.

GREEK STEW

Steps:

• Prepare a Dutch oven or large pot with cooking spray. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook and stir onion and garlic in hot oil until onion soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove onion mixture to a bowl.
• Heat remaining olive oil in the pot again over medium heat. Cook chicken in hot oil, turning a few times, until browned, about 5 minutes.
• Pour wine over the chicken; bring to a simmer and cook until chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 15 minutes.
• Stir onion mixture, tomato sauce, black pepper, lemon juice, hot pepper sauce, and cinnamon with the simmering chicken; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, place a cover on the pot, and cook at a simmer until the chicken is easily pulled apart, about 1 hour.

GREEK BEEF STEW

Steps:

• In a heavy kettle, brown meat in butter.
• Season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Add chopped onion and saute until clear.
• Mix in tomato paste, vinegar, garlic and half of the water.
• Add bay leaf.
• Cover and simmer 1 hour, adding additional water as needed.
• Add white onions and mushrooms.
• Cover and simmer 1 more hour or until meat and onions are tender.
• Add cheese, cover and cook 5 minutes, or until cheese melts.

ONE-POT BEEF STIFADO

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a flameproof casserole over a medium-high heat and brown the beef all over, removing it to a plate with a slotted spoon as you go (you may need to do this in batches). Drizzle the rest of the oil into the pan. Peel the onions (but leave whole) and add to the pan, then scatter over the sugar. Sizzle for 5 mins, stirring now and then until starting to brown. Add the garlic, bay, cinnamon stick, allspice, cloves and oregano, and cook for 1 min more. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for another minute, then tip in the beef along with any resting juices. Stir to coat in the spiced onion mixture.
• Add the red wine vinegar and chopped tomatoes. Rinse the cans out with the wine and pour it in, then add a third of a can of water. Season with salt and stir well. Bring to a simmer, stir again, then cover with the lid and transfer to the oven for 1 hr.
• Remove from the oven and stir again. If the sauce looks very thick, add a splash more water. Cover again and return to the oven for another hour, or until the meat is fork-tender - the timing will depend on the cut you've used. Serve hot. To get ahead, leave to cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container and chill for up to three days or freeze for up to three months. Defrost completely in the fridge overnight, then reheat in a pan over a low heat with a splash more water to loosen, if needed.

GREEK STYLE BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a 5-quart pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Add half the beef; cook and stir until well browned on all sides. Remove beef with a slotted spoon and set aside. Brown the remaining meat and set aside.
• Place chopped onion in the pressure cooker; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add the garlic and stir for an additional minute. Pour in the red wine, red wine vinegar, and beef broth; stir in the tomato paste and mix well.
• Grind or crush rosemary, oregano, and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder. Add crushed spices to the cooker with bay leaves, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, and brown sugar.
• Pour in tomatoes and their juice; rinse the can with 1/2 cup water and add the water to the cooker. Stir in potatoes and carrots. Return the browned meat to the pressure cooker. A 5-quart pot should be about half full and a little soupy; the potato will dissolve a bit and thicken it after cooking. Cover the pot and seal the lid.
• Bring the pot up to high pressure over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, maintaining full pressure, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let the pressure reduce naturally. Taste the stew and add salt, if desired.