Mix of slow cooker with roasted fresh veggies & beef

[profnot]

A couple of months ago, I made a slow cooker recipe with beef, bacon, cognac, beef bone broth, caramelized carrots & onions, rosemary, etc.

Recipe told me to cook it in a slow cooker on low for 6 hours. Turned out, 4 hours would have been plenty. Everything was dead and done. Flavour was rich but bland. We are told to let ingredients marry - well, these ingredients were married and amicably divorced.

So I put the stew into a container and froze it.

This weekend I thought I might rescue this stew by roasting some beef and vegetables and putting some of all three into a warm bowl for dinner.

Strategy worked out great! Veggies were al dente / crisp. Meat was freshly roasted. Slow cooker stew added depth and flavour.

This is my new Go To beef stew recipe.

 

[caseydog]

Cooking vegetables for a long time is how mom used to cook them. That's why I hated veggies as a kid.

Cooking a lean cut of beef low and slow is golden, and you can season your slow cooked meat with onions and garlic... and herbs.

You discovered on your own that most veggies work best in a low and slow stew if you add them late in the cook, so they still resemble their original state. Potatoes and root veggies can handle a longer cook, but not the kind of time needed to make a lean cut of beef tender.

I'm glad it worked out for you.

CD

 

[GotGarlic]

My mom did that, too, casey, and I made my pot roast the same way for years. I never did like it much. Then I saw a recipe that said to purée the vegetables to make a sauce serve it with freshly cooked vegetables. I like it much better that way. I also prefer cooking it on the stovetop rather than a slow cooker.

Profnot, glad you were able to make it work [emoji2]