Knutsen Magazine Spread Final
1
SECRETS FOR THE BEST SLOW COOKER BEEF 4 cooker. For vegetables where holding their shape is important (like chunks of potato or carrots), a good rule of thumb would be pieces no smaller than 1 inch. By cutting them a little larger, they remain toothsome, not mushy when you cook them. For vegetables that contribute flavor more than texture (like onions and garlic), cutting them smaller is fine. Meat for beef stew should also be cut into 1-inch pieces. Cut the pieces too large and they may not come out as tender. BEEF STEW RECIPE Active time: 45 minutes | Total: 8 3/4 hours 8To make ahead: Prepare through Step 3; cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day before cooking. 84 teaspoons canola oil, divided 82 pounds bottom round, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes 83/4 pound sliced cremini or white button mushrooms 83 tablespoons all-purpose flour 82 cups brown ale or dark beer 84 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 81 large onion, chopped 81 clove garlic, minced 81 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 81 teaspoon caraway seeds 83/4 teaspoon salt 81/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 81 bay leaf - Hilary Meyer Peppermint Associate Food Editor Hilary Meyer spends much of her time in the Peppermint Test Kitchen, testing and developing healthy recipes. She is a graduate of New England Culinary Institute. Tip 1: Maximize Flavor On Your Stove Dumping ingredients into your slow cooker and walking away may be convenient, but it’s usually not the best way to get the most flavor out of your food. You need the caramelized bits you get from searing your meat and vegetables on the stovetop first. Since you don’t need to worry about cooking things through (they’ll finish in your slow cooker) the process doesn’t take long. Just heat up a small amount of oil and give your meat and vegetables a sear before adding them to the slow cooker. Then “deglaze” the pan with liquid to get all the brown, caramelized bits from the sauté pan and pour the flavorful liquid into the slow cooker. When I was in culinary school, we learned a lot about how to develop flavors. These methods usually involved high-end ingredients, a lot of prep time and sometimes following complicated procedures to get good results. Little did I know a much easier path to culinary greatness was sitting in my pantry the whole time I was sweating in a restaurant kitchen. That would be my slow cooker. The humble slow cooker can turn out some pretty mean food if you know a few tricks. Not to mention it’s convenient, relatively inexpensive and very easy to use. In culinary school I would have been meticulously trimming an expensive cut of meat, tournéing vegetables and bathing them all in veal stock. But in this version, I’m simply searing bottom round, chopping my veggies and stewing it all together in beer in my slow cooker. The results are just as delicious. Here are some tricks to getting restaurant-worthy results with your slow cooker. “The humble slow cooker can turn out some pretty mean food if you know a few tricks” Peppermint Magazine November 2015 |3 2| Tip 2: Pick the Right Meat When it comes to your slow cooker, not all meat is created equal. To get richly flavored, melt-in-your-mouth-tender meat, you need to choose tougher cuts that can benefit from hours of cooking. Cuts like chuck, brisket and bottom round are all good choices--full of flavor and, another perk, relatively cheap too. As your stew cooks, the collagen inside the meat breaks down, making it tender and delicious. Tip 3: Pick the Right Vegetables Just like meat, there are some vegetables that are born to go into the slow cooker. When you’re picking vegetables for your stew, think hearty: root vegetables like potatoes, turnips and rutabaga are all good options--they can take the prolonged cooking and still hold their shape. Mushrooms also hold up well. More tender vegetables like snow peas, spinach and other leafy greens can certainly have their place in the slow cooker, but you may want to add them later; they can disintegrate if they spend too much time cooking. Tip 4: Cut Your Ingredients to Size Bigger is better when it comes to the size of vegetables that will be going into your slow
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Transcript of Knutsen Magazine Spread Final
SECRETS FOR THE BEST SLOW COOKER BEEF4
cooker. For vegetables where holding their shape is important (like chunks of potato or carrots), a good rule of thumb would be pieces no smaller than 1 inch. By cutting them a little larger, they remain toothsome, not mushy when you cook them. For vegetables that contribute flavor more than texture (like onions and garlic), cutting them smaller is fine. Meat for beef stew should also be cut into 1-inch pieces. Cut the pieces too large and they may not come out as tender.
BEEF STEW RECIPEActive time: 45 minutes | Total: 8 3/4 hours
8To make ahead: Prepare through Step 3; cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day before cooking.
84 teaspoons canola oil, divided 82 pounds bottom round, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes 83/4 pound sliced cremini or white button mushrooms 83 tablespoons all-purpose flour 82 cups brown ale or dark beer 84 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces 81 large onion, chopped 81 clove garlic, minced 81 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 81 teaspoon caraway seeds 83/4 teaspoon salt 81/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 81 bay leaf
- Hilary Meyer
Peppermint Associate Food Editor Hilary Meyer spends much of her time in the Peppermint Test Kitchen, testing and developing healthy recipes. She is a graduate of New EnglandCulinary Institute.
Tip 1: Maximize Flavor On Your Stove
Dumping ingredients into your slow cooker and walking away may be convenient, but it’s usually not the best way to get the most flavor out of your food. You need the caramelized bits you get from searing your meat and vegetables on the stovetop first. Since you don’t need to worry about cooking things through (they’ll finish in your slow cooker) the process doesn’t take long. Just heat up a small amount of oil and give your meat and vegetables a sear before adding them to the slow cooker. Then “deglaze” the pan with liquid to get all the brown, caramelized bits from the sauté pan and pour the flavorful liquid into the slow cooker.
When I was in culinary school, we learned a lot about how to develop flavors. These methods usually involved high-end ingredients, a lot of prep time and sometimes following complicated procedures to get good results. Little did I know a much easier path to culinary greatness was sitting in my pantry the whole time I was sweating in a restaurant kitchen. That would be my slow cooker. The humble slow cooker can turn out some pretty mean food if you know a few tricks. Not to mention it’s convenient, relatively inexpensive and very easy to use. In culinary school I would have been meticulously trimming an expensive cut of meat, tournéing vegetables and bathing them all in veal stock.
But in this version, I’m simply searing bottom round, chopping my veggies and stewing it all together in beer in my slow cooker. The results are just as delicious. Here are some tricks to getting restaurant-worthy results with your slow cooker.
“The humble slow cooker can turn out some pretty mean food if you know a few tricks”
Peppermint Magazine November 2015 |32|
Tip 2: Pick the Right Meat When it comes to your slow cooker, not all meat is created equal. To get richly flavored, melt-in-your-mouth-tender meat, you need to choose tougher cuts that can benefit from hours of cooking. Cuts like chuck, brisket and bottom round are all good choices--full of flavor and, another perk, relatively cheap too. As your stew cooks, the collagen inside the meat breaks down, making it tender and delicious.
Tip 3: Pick the Right Vegetables Just like meat, there are some vegetables that are born to go into the slow cooker. When you’re picking vegetables for your stew, think hearty: root vegetables like potatoes, turnips and rutabaga are all good options--they can take the prolonged cooking and still hold their shape. Mushrooms also hold up well. More tender vegetables like snow peas, spinach and other leafy greens can certainly have their place in the slow cooker, but you may want to add them later; they can disintegrate if they spend too much time cooking.
Tip 4: Cut Your Ingredients to Size Bigger is better when it comes to the size of vegetables that will be going into your slow
