Recipe: Beef Stew with Beer

I made Beef Stew with Beer for the first time the other day, only because we had a bottle of beer that had been sitting in our fridge for months.

[The recipe, from Pioneer Woman, is here.]

I’ve never considered myself a fan of beef stew. It always seemed like a so-so meal. But, this recipe was SO delicious that it has completely changed my view on stew (rhyme unintended).

Usually when I first taste a new recipe that I’ve made, I’m quick to critique it. (“It needs more salt,” “The flavor isn’t right,” or “I should have cooked it longer.”) This is one of the first times that I’ve made something and said, “It’s perfect!”

A couple of quick notes:

- The package of stew meat I had was only 1.5 lbs, so I used less beef stock (3 cups instead of 4 cups).

- I actually doubled the tomato paste (4 tablespoons instead of 2 tablespoons), partly because I wanted a thicker sauce and partly because it seemed like such a waste to only use 2 tablespoons of a can of tomato paste.

- I threw in more potatoes because, well, why not?

- Because of time constraints, I cooked it for only a little over an hour and I did not need the additional water.

Everything else I kept the same. The flavor is really rich and so tasty. We had the leftovers the next day for lunch, and they were even better.

And I liked the recipe so much that I made it again for dinner tonight.

Husband didn’t complain. After all, does a recipe get more guy-friendly than meat, potatoes, and beer?