Crock Pot Stew

Yet another yummy crock pot meal. This recipe is the ultimate comfort food! The smell of this cooking is unbelievable. Now the prep for this meal took a little bit longer, but I woke up 10 minutes early for work to make sure it was just right. Stephen claimed this was the BEST stew I have ever made. I really think the wine I used had a big influence. We happened to have a bottle left open from the night before from Talley Vineyards, one of their Bishops Peaks wines, it really made the dish amazing. The hint of wine in the dish made it spectacular. 

Hard to take a picture of stew and make it look
appetizing, but trust me, this one is a winner!

 2-4 lbs of beef, cut into cubes (I saved some time and bought some pre-cubed meat at the butcher. A little more expensive but saves so much time)

1/2 cup flour, for browning meat

olive oil

1 large onion

1 6 oz can tomato paste

1 cup red wine

4 cups red potatoes, cut up into small pieces

2 cups carrots, cut into rounds

2 cups beef consomme  

1 tablespoon salt

2 teaspoon oregano

2 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoon parsley

2 cups chopped mushrooms (I didn't have this but think it would be a good addition)

Directions:

• Coat the meat in flour. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a pan and brown the meat. Then put in the crock pot.
• Add the onions to the pan and cook until tender, then stir in the tomato paste and coat the onions. Add the wine to pot to scrape up all the yummy bits left over from the meat and onions, then add all the wine and juice to the crock pot.
• Add all the vegetables and spices to the crock pot and cover.
• Cook on low for about 8 hours on low, until the potatoes are fork tender and the meat is cooked. 
• I had mine cook for 8 hours then it clicked to warm for a few hours while I was still at work and it was awesome. 
• You HAVE to try this!