This French-inspired stew ticks all the boxes for a hearty meal in wintry weather. Try serving it with some warm, crusty bread on the side.
Serves: 6
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 4 hours 5 minutes to 7 hours 5 minutes
Ingredients:
- 450g lean beef round steak, fat trimmed, cut into 3cm pieces
- 1 small brown onion, finely chopped
- 300g button mushrooms, halved
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 400g can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 350 ml beef stock, made with
- 1 1/2 gluten-free stock cubes
- 400g can diced tomatoes
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme, to serve
Method
Place beef in a 5.5 litre (22 cup) capacity slow cooker. Lightly spray a large non-stick frying pan with oil and heat over medium–high heat. Add onion, mushrooms and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes or until lightly browned. Add onion mixture, carrots and half the beans to slow cooker.
Place remaining beans in a blender with one–third of the stock and blend to a puree. Add puree to slow cooker, then stir in remaining stock, tomatoes, oregano and dried thyme. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover with lid. Cook on high for four hours (or low for seven hours), until beef is tender. Serve topped with fresh thyme.
To refrigerate: store stew in a large reusable container or transfer individual portions to separate reusable containers and keep for up to three days. To reheat, simmer gently in a saucepan or microwave individual portions until hot, adding a little extra water if the stew is too thick.
To freeze: store stew as above for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat as above.
This recipe is from 101 Favourite Weight-Loss Recipes by WeightWatchers, published by Macmillan Australia, RRP $39.99. It is published with permission. Photography by WeightWatchers International.
Do you have a slow cooker? What’s your favourite thing to cook in it? Let us know in the comments section below.
Also read: Poppy Seed and Coconut Beef Kebabs
