Polenta Beef Stew

Submitted by Annacia

"This inviting stew comes from a region of Switzerland near the border of Italy. Swiss cooking is among the heartiest in Europe -- and the use of polenta here is very traditional."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 25mins
• Ingredients: 24
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 1⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
• 1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 lbs boneless beef chuck steaks, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
• 1 teaspoon snipped fresh rosemary or 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14 ounce) can beef broth
• 1 1⁄2 cups dry red wine
• 8 ounces boiling onions
• 5 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1⁄2 cup snipped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1⁄4 cup tomato paste
• fresh rosemary sprig (optional)
• polenta

• POLENTA

• 3 cups milk
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter

directions

1. STEW:

2. Place flour, garlic powder, thyme, basil, salt, and pepper in a plastic bag.
3. Add meat pieces, a few at a time, shaking to coat.
4. In a Dutch oven brown meat, half at a time, in hot oil; drain fat. Return all meat to Dutch oven; add chopped onion, dried rosemary (if using), and garlic.
5. Cook and stir until onion is tender. Stir in broth and wine.
6. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 1-1/2 hours.
7. Stir in boiling onions and carrots.
8. Bring to boiling; reduce heat.
9. Simmer, covered, about 30 minutes more or until meat and vegetables are tender. Meanwhile, prepare Polenta.
10. Just before serving, stir parsley, tomato paste, and the 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, if using, into stew.
11. Serve stew with Polenta. If desired, garnish with rosemary sprigs.
12. Makes about 7 cups.

13. POLENTA:

14. In a large saucepan bring 3 cups milk just to a simmer over medium heat.
15. In a medium bowl combine 1 cup cornmeal, 1 cup water, and 1 teaspoon salt.
16. Stir cornmeal mixture slowly into hot milk. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until mixture is very thick, stirring occasionally.
17. (If mixture is too thick, stir in additional milk).
18. Stir in 2 tablespoons butter or margarine until melted.

Reviews

[MarraMamba]

Update: The best stew ever. Full of flavor and full of goodness. this was just rib sticking good. A fabulous stew, and putting the herbs in the flour really ensured it started out well. I used wild boar and am about to go back for seconds. The wine and the stock ended up as a sauce you want to sop up forever which the polenta lets you do :)<br/><br/>i actually left out the tomato paste because it was so good, i didnt want to mess with it and maybe hide the wine/stock and herbs

 

[Deantini]

This dish is just AMAZING - I would give it 10 stars if I could. The whole family loved it. The depth of flavour is just fantastic! I cut back on the carrots and added celery and mushrooms as well. I omitted the boiling onions and the tomato paste. Just loved the spices, red wine and everything else about this dish and it pairs perfectly with the polenta. Good for company as well. Thanks for sharing this keeper! UPDATE: I have made this again for a bigger crowd and the guests just loved it. I would add that the polenta portion size is on the smaller end of the scale. For six people I would double the polenta just to make sure you have enough.