Chef John's Italian Braised Beef and Potatoes

This has become a favorite in our house. The original recipe is here. We've modified it just a bit for our taste so that's why I'm saving it here.

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil
• 3 pounds beef 
• 1 large shallot, minced
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/2 cup white wine, or one 187 ml bottle
• 2 cups beef broth or chicken broth (we use the whole package)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 3-4 carrots, cut into 1 inch chunks

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Mix salt, and black pepper together in a small bowl, and generously season both sides of beef.
3. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over high heat; add beef to the pot and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on both sides. Remove beef to a plate; set aside.
4. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and celery to the pot with a large pinch of seasoning. Cook, stirring, until onions begin to turn translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Stir in tomato paste, garlic, and dried herbs, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in wine, and cook for a few minutes until most of the wine has disappeared.
6. Add broth and bay leaf, and turn heat to high to bring the pot back to a simmer. Add beef back in along with any liquid from the holding bowl.
7. Roast, covered, in the preheated oven until meat is almost fork tender, but not falling off the bone, about 2 hours.
8. After 2 hours check the meat. If it's close add your potatoes and carrots. Add more stock if needed (or water).
9. Cover; roast at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) until meat and potatoes are very tender, about 1 hour more.
10. Serve in a bowl with cooking liquids spooned over. 

Meatballs version 2

This is a modification of our other meatballs recipe. This is if you only have 2 pounds of meat, or if you'd like to make a meatloaf instead.

Ingredients for the slurry:

1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
1/4 cup milk
1 large egg
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Ingredients for the meat mixture:
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients for the slurry and set aside.

Combine all the ingredients for the meat mixture until well combined and one good lump. Use your fingers to poke holes in the lump of meat. Take your slurry mixture and put on top of the meat mixtures, using a spatula to spread and smush slurry into the holes you made.

I like my meatballs about golf ball size. I make my ball, and then slightly flatten. I then put them in a sauté pan on medium heat and brown on each side for about 4 minutes per side. Then I transfer to a foil lined, lightly oiled, sheet pan and bake in a 425 degree oven for 15 - 20 minutes until they're nicely browned and cooked through. No need to turn.

Dougherty Homemade Beef Stroganoff

This is one of my all time favorite meals that David cooks. It's one of those meals that you can make quick and easy for week-night enjoyment, or you can make it a little more fancy for a nice dinner. It just depends on your mood and what kind of beef you have on hand. Another great thing about this dinner is it can be done in 1 pan (well, 2 if you include the pot to cook the pasta).

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef 
16 oz sliced mushrooms 
10.5 oz cream of mushroom soup (we really like Campbell's Cream of Cremini & Shiitake)
16 oz sour cream (you are only going to use about 3/4 of the container)
Butter (for the mushrooms-trust me)
Salt
Pepper
Egg Noodles

Directions:

First you want to cook up your mushrooms. When I get them I'll get the little boxes from Safeway that are 8 oz each and I will cook each container separately. It takes a little time, but it is worth it because we love mushrooms and it makes them so good. You want to cook them in on a med heat in a sauté pan (the same one you will do your beef in and eventually mix everything together in). I put 2-3 tablespoons of unsalted butter in the hot pan and then add the mushrooms. Gently mix it all up a bit to cover the mushrooms and melt the butter. If the pan seems dry, you can add more butter. Mushrooms and butter are a good thing. When the mushrooms as as tender and browned as you like, I will add a tiny bit of salt before dumping them into a bowl while I get the second container browned. Repeat with the second container (if you did two).

Next you will want to brown your hamburger. Just put it in the same pan you just did the mushrooms in. After you have put your beef in and broken it up a bit you should start your water for your egg noodles. You are going to brown the hamburger, and drain off any excess fat/grease. Leave the meat in the pan.

If your water is boiling, cook those noodles!

You can turn the heat down a bit now. Add the can of cream of mushroom soup to the hamburger and stir that up a bit. Next you are going to add the sour cream. I'd start with about half the container and taste it to see if you want to add more (then answer should be yes) and then add enough to make it more saucy and taste how you like. Then add in the mushrooms. The soup we use is salty and peppery enough that I don't add more, but if you feel like it needs either of those now is the time to add and stir it in.

If you aren't already cooking your noodles now is the time to do so. You can just turn the stroganoff to a low setting and stir it once in awhile to keep it all mixed. You should also keep tasting it to make sure it still tastes good.

Drain your noodles. Put some noodles in a bowl/on a plate and then scoop some stroganoff on top and enjoy!

Variations:

• You can cook an onion or shallot with the meat
• You can use different cuts of meat, great way to use some holiday prime rib
• Different cream of mushroom soup
• Try different pasta
• You could use Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream

Chef John's Prime Rib Gravy

I loved this so much I wanted to make sure I always had the recipe available. The original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients for the Beef stock:
1 teaspoon butter for greasing pan
½ onion, unpeeled, sliced
½ cup roughly chopped carrots
½ cup roughly chopped celery
2 beef rib bones
4 cups beef bone broth or high quality, low-sodium beef broth
2 cups water

Ingredients for the Gravy:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup sliced brown mushroom (Optional)
2 tablespoons reserved beef fat
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
3 ½ cups reserved beef stock
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Cayenne to taste
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Make magic:

1.    Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with foil.

2.    Spread out onions, carrots, and celery on the prepared baking sheet. Set rib bones on top.

3.    Roast until bones are deep brown and onions are black, about 1 hour. Use a spatula or tongues to transfer bones and vegetables into a saucepan. Drain off and reserve any rendered fat from the baking sheet for the gravy.

4.    Add broth and water to the saucepan, and bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until meat falls off bone and is flavorless, about 4 hours. Skim any fat from the surface and reserve. Strain broth and let cool to room temp.

5.    Melt butter in a pot on medium-high and sauté mushrooms until well browned. Add 2 tablespoons rendered beef fat and stir until melted. Add flour and cook for a few minutes. Whisk in broth, and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until gravy has thickened to desired thickness, 5 to 10 minutes more

6.    Adjust salt to taste and season with freshly ground black pepper, cayenne, and balsamic vinegar. Taste again, adjust, and serve.

Braised Short Ribs from Chrissy Teigen

Get the recipe here (really please go check out her site!)

Ingredients:

3 tsps kosher salt, divided, plus more for seasoning
2 tsps cayenne pepper (I cut it down to under 1 tsp because I'm a wimp)
2 tsps paprika (I used the same amount of this as I did of the cayenne)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
4 lbs beef short ribs (cut English-style, meaning meat on top of long bones as opposed to cut across the bones)
6 tblsps canola oil, divided
4 large carrots, cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces
3 stalks celery, cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces
1 (14.5 oz) bag frozen pearl onions, defrosted or 1 large onion, diced (I used a small shallot)
1 tblsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tblsp flour
1 (12 oz) bottle beer, any kind (I used flat tire)
2 tblsps light brown sugar
2  14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes in juice
2 cups beef broth
2 bay leaves

Directions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 325°F. Combine 1 teaspoon of the salt with the cayenne, paprika, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub all of the meaty parts of the ribs with the rub. Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the ribs and brown all over, about 8 minutes total. Transfer to a plate, drain and discard the liquid, then wipe out the pot with a paper towel (some of the spices in the pot may be a tad burnt and you don’t want that involved with the rest of the recipe).

2.  Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the pot, then add the carrots, celery, and onions and cook until the celery and carrots begin to soften, 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until it disappears into the vegetables and the flour browns a drop, 1-2 minutes. Add the beer, scrape up the brown bits at the bottom of the pot, bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half and thickened, 5-6 minutes.

3.  Stir in the brown sugar, then add the tomatoes, beef broth, remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil then add the short ribs, bone side up. Reduce to a simmer, then cover and transfer to the oven; braise until the meat is falling off the bone and the liquid has thickened, 2½ to 3 hours. Remove from the oven.

4.  Using tongs, transfer the ribs from the liquid to a serving bowl and cover with foil to keep warm. Arrange a colander over a large bowl and dump the vegetables and liquid into the colander. Skim the fat off the liquid and season it with salt and pepper. Arrange the veggies on the serving platter with the short ribs and serve the cooking liquid on the side for drizzling, pouring, or dunking.

Miso Braised Beef (thank you Chef John)

This is another recipe from Chef John that I wanted to try. You can get his ingredients and video here (I recommend watching it).

2 tblsp peanut, vegetable or olive oil
1 (2 1/2 lb) beef chuck cut into 2 inch strips or cubes
1 tblsp butter
3-4 king trumpet mushrooms, halved (I couldn't find any so I cut up 2 portobello mushrooms into about 4 strips per cap)
1 yellow onion, diced
1/4 cup sake or white wine
3 tblsp yellow miso
2 tblsp maple syrup (not pancake syrup, you want real maple syrup)
2 tblsp ketchup
1/2 cup chicken stock or broth

Pat your beef dry and season all sides with salt and pepper. Put your oil in your pan or dutch oven (I prefer the dutch oven) and sear the beef on all sides. Set aside on a plate and turn off the heat. Add butter to the pot. Once the butter has melted turn the heat to medium and put the mushrooms in cut side down and brown-takes about 3-4 minutes per side. When browned on both sides remove from the pot and put with the beef. The bottom of your part is going to be dark and crusty and this is a good thing. Don't be worried. Add the onion to the pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the onion just starts to get color. Add sake or wine to deglaze the pot. Before the wine evaporates add the miso, maple syrup, ketchup and stock and stir to combine. Once your liquid is simmering add the meat, mushrooms and any juice accumulated from them. Cover and cook on low to medium low heat for 2-3 hours or until the meat is fork tender. You want your liquid to be at a nice simmer, not a boil. After about an hour turn the meat over for a more even cook. If your pot looks too dry you can add more stock. Once your meat is fork tender taste for seasoning and serve! We had ours over mashed potatoes but you can do rice or noodles or anything you want. It was really good with the potatoes.

Cheeseburger Soup

½ Lb. Ground beef

¾ cup chopped onion

¾ cup shredded carrots

¾ cup diced celery

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried parsley flakes

4 Tbsp. butter

3 cups chicken broth

4 cups diced potatoes

¼ cup flour

2 Cups Velveeta Cheese cubed

1 ½ cup milk

¾ tsp. salt

¼ tsp pepper

¼ cup sour cream

Brown beef & set aside. Sautee onion, carrots, celery, basil & parsley with 1 tbsp. butter until vegetables are tender.

Add broth, potatoes & beef and bring to a boil. Reduce heat-cover and simmer until potatoes are tender.

In a small skillet-melt remaining butter. Add flour and cook until bubbly. Add this mixture to soup until it thickens.

Reduce heat to low – add cheese, milk, salt & pepper. Cook until cheese melts.

Remove from heat & blend in sour cream. Can put in a crockpot.

Beef Stew by Alice Obering

2 lb. Beef Chuck or Stew Meat cut in 1 inch cubes

½ cup flour

1 ½ teasp. Salt

½ teasp. Pepper

1 ½ cup beef broth

1 teasp. Worchestershire Sauce

1 clove garlic

1 bay leaf

1 teasp paprika

4 carrots sliced

3 potatoes diced

2 onions chopped

1 stalk celery slices

Place meat in crock pot. Mix flour, salt and pepper and pour over meat stew to coat meat with flour. Add remaining ingredients and stir to mix well. Cover and cook on low 10-12 hours or high 4-6 hours. Stir stew thoroughly before serving.

Beef Broccoli Pie

1 lb. ground beef
1/4 c. chopped onion
2 tbsp. flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/4 c. milk
1 (3 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 egg, beaten
1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen, chopped broccoli, cooked and well drained
Pastry for 2 crust (9 inch) pies
4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese
Milk to brush on crust

Brown beef and onion; drain fat. Stir in flour and salt. Add milk and cream cheese. Cook and stir until smooth and bubbly. Add beaten egg to a portion of hot mixture, then add to remaining mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in cooked broccoli. Set aside. Line a 9 inch pie plate with half the pastry. Fill pastry with hot mixture. Slice cheese and arrange on top of meat mixture. Seal with top crust and perforate crust. Brush top with milk. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Let pie stand for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 6.

Enchilada Casserole

1 ½ Lb hamburger & onion, Brown & Drain

1 10 oz can enchilada sauce (mild Old El Paso)

Grated cheddar cheese

10 flour tortilla shells

Place shells between damp paper towels to soften in microwave-heat 10 sec.

1 8 oz carton of sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup

½ cup milk

Add sauce to browned hamburger & warm.

Cook milk, soup & sour cream mixture.

Place hamburger mixture in shell, sprinkle with cheese, wrap shell & place in greased 9 x 13 pan. Continue with all the shells. Cover with Soup mixture & top with cheese. Bake at 350 for approximately 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Easy Pasta Bake

Cook 1 lb ground beef in skillet, drain.

Stir in 1 jar (30 oz) spaghetti sauce, ½ cup Kraft, grated Parmesan Cheese and add 5 cups cooked pasta. Place in 13 x 9 baking dish. Top with 8 oz. Mozzarella Cheese. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

Gwen's Chuck Roast

3 Lbs chuck roast

2 ½ cups red wine, divided

6 med onions, sliced & divided

1 cup soy sauce, divided

1 cup Worcestershire Sauce, divided

9 bay leaves, divided

1 large bell pepper, chopped, divided

1 teasp black pepper

½ teasp crushed basil leaves

Marinate roast for 1 hr in 1 cup of wine, turning once in glass bowl. Drain marinade & place roast in a heavy skillet large enough to lay flat. Fill skillet with water to almost cover meat. Add half of onions, 1 cup of wine, ½ cup of soy sauce, ½ cup of Wor. Sauce, 4 bay leaves & half bell pepper. Cook 40 minutes over med heat. Turn meat & cook 20 minutes more. When liquid gets low, add up to 2 cups of additional water. Add remaining wine, onions, soy sauce. Wor sauce, bay leaves & bell pepper along with black pepper & basil leaves. Cook about 1  ½ hours longer or until meat is tender.

To Die For Crock Pot Roast

1 Beef Roast                        

1 Pkg. Ranch Dressing mix

1 pkg. Italian dressing Mix

1 cup water

1pkg brown gravy mix

Pour water in crockpot, combine dry mixes & sprinkle over roast. Cook on low – 6-7 hrs. May add vegetables last 3 hours & turn on high. Put veg in bottom of crock pot in the liquid.

Quick Meal in One Dish

2 cups of macaroni

1 26 oz. can tomato soup

1 ½ lb. hamburger

1 26 oz can vegetable soup

1 cup drained kidney beans

chili powder

1 med onion

Cook macaroni according to directions. Drain. Add soups and beans and season with chili powder according to taste.

Brown hamburger & chopped onion. Drain & mix all together. Simmer until heated through. Serve with tossed salad.

David's Meat Loaf

1 pound hamburger

1-2 eggs, depending on how juicy the meat is

Italian seasoning

parsley

onion powder

3/4 cup ketchup

Worcestershire sauce

bread crumbs (not to dry out the mixture, just enough to help it hold shape)

Mix the above ingredients, using bread crumbs to help loaf hold its shape. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 1 hour.  You want the temperature to be 160 degrees.

Mom's Meat Loaf

1 1/2 pounds of hamburger
3/4 cup oatmeal
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
onion powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 beaten egg

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.

Recipe from Ladonna Love

Steak & Bacon Tournedos

1 - 1 1/2 pounds of beef flank steak
Instant non-seasoned meat tenderizer
1/2 pound of bacon
1 teaspoon of garlic salt
1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of snipped parsley
1 (1 3/4 ounce) envelope hollandaise sauce mix
1/4 teaspoon dried tarragon, crushed

Pound the flank steak to an even thickness, about 1/2 inch thick. Use the meat tenderizer according to the directions on the package. Meanwhile cook the bacon until almost done but not crisp. Sprinkle flank steak with garlic salt and pepper. Score the steak diagonally making diamond shaped cuts. Place bacon strips lengthwise on flank steak. Sprinkle with parsley. Roll up jelly roll style, starting at the narrow end. Skewer with wooden picks at 1 inch intervals. Cut in 1 inch slices with serrated knife. Grill over medium coals for 15 minutes, turning once for rare. Meanwhile in a saucepan prepare the hollandaise sauce mix according to the directions on the package, adding the tarragon to the dry mix. Serve sauce with the flank steaks. Makes 4 servings, 2 pinwheel steaks each.

Beef Soup

I found a recipe for beef stew that sounded really good-and when I made it, it tasted really good but it wasn't a stew. It is more like a luscious beef soup. I've made some changes to recipe to accommodate our preference and am saving it here so I can make it again. To see the original recipe: Best Ever Hearty Beef Stew

2 lbs beef chuck roast (don't use stew meat), trimmed and cut into 1 - 1 1/2 inch cubes (David says bigger is better)
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp coats ground black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt, divided
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 shallot, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press
4 cups beef stock (use 2 cups if you want it less soupy)
1 cup Cabernet Sauvignon
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp dried Italian seasoning
4 cups chopped red potatoes, bite-sized pieces, about 1/2 inch
3 cups chopped carrots, bite-sized pieces

1.  Trim the hard fat. Seriously do this. Cut beef into 1 - 1 1/2 inch cubes. David recommends the 1 1/2 inch-easier to brown and just all around better.

2.  Combine: flour, paprika, pepper and 1 tsp salt in a sealable bag. Seal and shake to combine. Add the beef and shake to coat well.

3.  Warm olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once warm add the butter to melt. Once butter is melted carefully add the beef. I would do half the beef at a time. You are going to be browning each side of the beef so you will want room to turn your meat. Brown for about 3-5 minutes per side. Once all sides are browned put in a separate bowl.

4.  Add the shallot and garlic to the pot. Cook until translucent, about 3-4 minutes.

5.  Add wine to deglaze the pan by scaring up all the yummy browned bits on the bottom. Add beef stock, Worcestershire, Italian seasoning and 1 tsp on salt. Add beef back to the pot and bring to a boil. Once you have it boiling, reduce to a gentle simmer and allow soup to simmer 40-50 minutes.

6.  After you have been simmering for 40-50 minutes, add the potatoes and carrots. Stir to cover. Simmer 40-50 minutes more or until the vegetables are tender.

Runzas

This is a family favorite. I will admit, I'm not a cabbage fan so the cabbage hater filling was for me. These are delicious balls of dough filled with warm yummy fillings that will hopefully bring you as much joy as I had eating them growing up!

Traditional Filling:
1/2 lb ground beef
2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
2 c. chopped cabbage
1/8 tsp black pepper

Brown ground beef. Wilt cabbage in butter. Add to beef mixture with salt and pepper.

Cabbage Hater Filling:
1 - 1 1/2 lb ground beef
1/3 - 1/4 lb velveeta cheese (oh yeah)
1/4 - 1/2 tsp oregano
Pinch of parsley and black pepper

Brown the ground beef. Add cheese and mix until melted. Stir in Oregano and pepper.

Sweet Dough:
2 cups milk (or half and half), or potato water

1/4 cup instant potatoes

1/2 cup sugar

2 rounded tbsp lard (or butter)

2 eggs, well beaten

1 tbsp salt

1 package dry yeast dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water and add 1 tsp sugar

Heat the milk. In a large bowl put sugar, potatoes, lard and salt. Add the warm milk. Stir until lard is melted. Add 2 cups flour and stir real good. Add the eggs and yeast, stir this real good to get all bubbles in it. Then add flour gradually until you can work by hand. Knead about 10 minutes. The dough should be pliable so you can roll it out. 

Roll sweet dough very thin and cut into 6 or 7 inch squares. Place about 3 tbsp of meat mixture into center of each square. Bring corners of dough to the center. Pinch edges together and place smooth side up on a greased cookie sheet. Let rise, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Versatile Marinade for Barbecued Meats

We've had a new grill for a while--a Big Green Egg--and since we purchased it, I've been experimenting with marinades. I've settled on one that works really well with pork, chicken and beef.

Ingredients:

1/4 c. light soy
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tbsp good italian seasoning
1 tbsp garlic powder (or 2 cloves fresh-pressed if you prefer)
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp sea salt

Mix everything up into a slurry and pour into a large zip-lock bag containing 1 to 1.5 pounds of your favorite barbecuing fare. Seal well, and then gently massage the bag. Let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, turning it every hour (or so) to make sure all of the contents are getting a good soak. Grill to your liking.

~David