Simplicity Itself Meat and Potato Stew

This is based on a recipe my mother used to make for us all the time when I was growing up. It would seem to be too simple to be good but it isn't. It can be made with any red meat, either pork, beef or lamb.

• Ready In: 56 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1 -2  lb pork (any red meat works, in bite size pieces) or 1 -2  lb beef (any red meat works, in bite size pieces) or 1 -2  lb lamb (any red meat works, in bite size pieces)
• 4 -6  medium potatoes (regular potato)
• 1  large onion, diced
• 3 -4  fresh garlic cloves (optional)
• 2 -4  tablespoons garlic powder
• 3 -5  tablespoons beef bouillon granules or 4  tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
• 1 -2  tablespoon ground black pepper (or to taste ( I prefer heavy on the black pepper in this dish myself)
• 6  cups water (at least enough to just cover potatoes and meat)

Directions

1. Use large skillet, electric skillet, or dutch oven to prepare this dish.
2. Cut meat into bite sized chunks. Set aside.
3. Dice onion; set aside.
4. Peel and chop garlic; set aside.
5. Peel potatoes (if you are going to peel them) and set aside in water so they don’t turn color.
6. Have spices out and ready to measure with measuring spoon.
7. In large skillet (or dutch oven), heat cooking oil to good and hot.
8. Add chopped garlic to oil -- let fry for half a minute.
9. Add diced onions; let fry with pan covered for two to three minutes, stirring occasionally with spatula so it doesn’t burn.
10. Add cubes of meat to hot oil with the onion and garlic. Fry all together until meat is lightly browned and mixed with onion for flavor.
11. While meat is browning, slice the potatoes over the top of the cooking meat and onions.
12. Mix around potato into meat/onion mixture to coat potato with flavored drippings.
13. Add bouillon granules, spices and water. (personally, I think a fair amount of black pepper makes this dish even better, but that is only my taste, may not be yours).
14. Turn up heat on potatoes, water, bouillon and spices and cover until it all comes back to a boil.
15. Once boils reduce heat to medium low and cover leaving cooking heat between simmer and medium.
16. Let cook covered for approximately 20 minutes to half hour, or until potatoes get soft.
17. Once during cooking open lid and flip potatoes so they cook on both sides. This step is optional.
18. This will all cook down into a nice stew.
19. Right at end, chop about half the softened potatoes up so they will break down faster to form the gravy. Leave the other half in chunks.
20. Stew is now ready for final taste test (adjustment of spicing).
21. If the stew isn’t quite thick enough, mix some corn starch (two tablespoons) into very cold water (1/2 cup).
22. Turn up heat under stew until stew begins to boil.
23. Thicken corn starch using flat side of spatula to mix the corn starch into every corner of the liquid and evenly distribute potatoes and meat throughout resulting gravy.
24. If too bland, add a little more bouillon granules, pepper or garlic powder as needed.
25. Immediately reduce heat to warm setting and keep on low simmer until ready to serve.
26. Serving suggestion: accompany stew with a nice side salad, and/it is good simply with buttered bread.