Braised Beef with Leeks, Orange and Cinnamon

According to the weather forecast, it’s basically supposed to rain for the next 800 years.  This morning I ran a very soggy 3 miles around the neighborhood and came back looking like a drowned rat. 

Something about rain always makes me yearn for straight-up comfort food, and nothing is more intensely comforting than a steaming bowl of rich, savory, soul-quenching stew. 

And the star ingredient (which I forgot to include in the lineup above):

 

 Ingredients: 

• 1 tsp salt & 1 tsp pepper (plus more to taste)
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1 lb beef chuck, cubed
• 2 tbsp canola oil, 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 Spanish onion, small dice
• 1 large carrot, small dice
• 1 celery stalk, small dice
• 2 leeks, white and green parts only, sliced in rings
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 fresh bay leaf, or 2 dried
• 1 tbsp fresh sage, finely chopped
• 1 stick of cinnamon
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 3/4 cup red wine
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1.5 cups beef stock (plus water as needed)
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• fresh flag-leaf Italian parsley for garnish

Instructions:

Rub about 1 tsp of salt & several grinds of black pepper into beef cubes.  Sprinkle flour onto cubes until they’re lightly covered on all sides.  Heat oil in a large dutch oven (or in a crappy Ikea pot, if you’re like me and that’s what you’ve got).  Brown beef cubes in batches (will take 5-10 minutes depending on how big your pot is – I had to do 3 batches). 

When beef is browned, remove from pot and set aside.  Add all the veggies and chopped herbs to the pot and cook, stirring, over medium heat until onion and leek start to get soft and translucent, 3-4 minutes.  Add beef cubes back into pot.  Add tomato paste and cook for one minute, then add wine and vinegar.  Bring to a boil and cook, stirring and scraping up brown bits on the bottom of the pot, until liquid is almost completely evaporated.  Then add beef stock, bay leaves & cinnamon stick (liquid should cover beef & vegetables - add water if necessary).  

Cover and simmer gently over low heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally and checking periodically to make sure liquid isn’t getting too low.  Uncover and continue simmering 10-15 minutes longer until beef is tender.

To serve, spoon into bowls and top each serving with a sprinkle of orange zest and 1 tbsp fresh chopped parsley.

[Serves 4-6; lightly adapted from this recipe in Michael Psilakis's How to Roast a Lamb: New Greek Classic Cooking] 

We ate our stew over a white-bean puree (recipe here - the only difference was I made it with Boursin this time instead of goat cheese.  It actually tasted almost exactly the same though).  We also ate it with some simple spring asparagus, tossed with a little olive oil, salt & pepper, and roasted in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

I was worried the cinnamon-orange flavors would be too overpowering because the stew was extremely fragrant while cooking (actually, I originally included 2 cinnamon sticks, but fished one out after about 4 minutes because of how strong the smell was).  But the taste was actually pretty subtle.  It was nice to switch it up a little. 

Also – since there were only two of us, this recipe made tons of leftovers.  I’m pretty sure this guy’s flavor is only going to get better on reheating.

On tonight’s menu – White Bean Panzanella with Fennel and Feta!