Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

beef stew or venison stew

Recipe by
Cindi Marie Bauer
Marshfield, WI

I've been making this stew for over 30 years. It can be made with either beef or venison. A friend of my daughter's really likes this stew. He even told me... "It's the best stew he's ever had!" Needless to say I was quite flattered by his compliment!

yield 8 - 10
method Stove Top

Ingredients For beef stew or venison stew

  • 1-1/2 lbs.
    beef or venison stew meat, cut into 3/4" pcs.
  • 1/2 cup
    flour
  • 2-3 Tbsp
    shortening (add more if need be)
  • salt and pepper, season according to taste
  • 1 md
    onion, chopped fine
  • several lg
    dashes of worcestershire sauce
  • 6 cups
    hot water
  • 2 tsp
    beef bouillon granules
  • pinch
    of dried thyme
  • 1
    bay leaf
  • 1 Tbsp.
    lemon juice (this tenderizes the meat while cooking)
  • 4
    whole cloves
  • 5
    carrots, sliced thin
  • 4
    medium-sized potatoes, cubed small
  • 1/2 to 1
    green or yellow bell pepper, chopped fine
  • 1 stalk
    celery, sliced thin
  • 1 (4 oz.)
    can mushroom stems & pieces, drained
  • 1
    (14.5 oz.) can whole tomatoes, cut up
  • 1/2 cup
    frozen peas, optional (*see note)
  • 4 Tbsp.
    flour (l use cornstarch)
  • 1/2 cup
    cold water
  • 1 tsp.
    kitchen bouquet browning & seasoning sauce (opt.)

How To Make beef stew or venison stew

  • 1
    Coat beef stew meat (or venison stew meat) with flour.
  • 2
    In a large skillet, melt the shortening.
  • 3
    Add the flour coated meat; season with salt and pepper.
  • 4
    When the meat is almost browned, add onions, and finish browning.
  • 5
    Add the Worcestershire sauce, and stir for another minute.
  • 6
    Transfer to a 5 quart Dutch Oven, or a large soup kettle.
  • 7
    Add the hot water, bouillon granules, thyme, bay leaf, lemon juice, and whole cloves.
  • 8
    Bring to a boil, cover, then reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 2 hours.
  • 9
    Add the carrots, potatoes, green peppers, celery, mushrooms and tomatoes. Cover, and simmer 1-1/2 hours.
  • 10
    Remove the bay leaf and whole cloves at this point, then bring back to a boil.
  • 11
    Combine the flour and cold water, and add this to the boiling stew; stirring constantly.
  • 12
    Finally add the Kitchen Bouquet, and thoroughly mix through.
  • 13
    *Note: Sometimes you'll only need 3 tablespoons of flour, mixed with 1/3 cup cold water to thicken the stew. Also, if wanting to add peas to the stew, add the frozen peas within the last 20 minutes of cooking time (while the vegetables are simmering).
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