London on a Sunday.

What better way to spend your Sunday than listening to the fabulous lilt of the British accent, taking in the view of the River Thames, basking in the wonder of  Buckingham Palace. Not to mention those quaint side streets and shops where you can buy anything from candy to magic wands. Huh! Magic wands?  Oh, did you think that I was having a “holiday” in Jolly Ole England? Nope, sorry, I wish. That would be the monkeys watching Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, while I was making London Broil Stew today.

Are you ever fortunate enough to have a slow lazy Sunday where you actually get to stay home? That all you have to do is relax and fiddle around your house, chase monkeys and stay in your pj’s until noon? Then this is the perfect recipe for you on just such a Sunday. Especially if it is chilly outside and your poor  surfer has been stuck all weekend in the cold wet rain at a surf contest. He will just love warming up to this.  Sundays are the perfect day of the week to try out that new recipe or make the one you love which takes all day to slow cook. So I hope that you enjoy my version of Beef Stew, which you can stretch into three different recipes.

London Broil Stew

1 London Broil around 2lbs

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup of soy sauce

1 32 oz container of beef broth

5 cloves of garlic

1 tsp of olive oil

water

6 medium potatoes

5 large carrots

*vegetables of your choice for the 2nd recipe of vegetable soup: beans, corn, turnips. You can also add pasta, barley or rice.*

First you will need to salt and pepper the beef on both sides in a casserole dish. I like Kosher salt the best because it brings out the flavor of the beef. The type of salt you use really makes a difference. Try this site for more salt information Gourmet Sleuth.

Add the soy sauce and let the beef marinate for about 30 minutes.

Warm the olive oil in a dutch oven or stock pot.

Use a garlic press or mince the garlic very fine.

Add the garlic and just roast to flavor the oil. Then remove before or right after you add the beef or it will burn.

Add the beef to the oil.  * I cut my beef in half so that I can get an even sear.*  I add half of the marinade per cut. Searing the meat keeps the juices in.

Make sure that you sear the top and the bottom…

even the sides.

You can even enlist help :) Boys need to know how to make a killer piece of meat that is not only grilled.

Once the beef is seared, add the beef stock…

then top it off with water. The amount of water you need will depend on the size of your pot. I use about a quart. The liquid level needs to be about  2 inches below the rim.

Cover and keep on a low rolling boil for about 5 hours.

You have enough time now to watch that movie with the family, read the book that you have been putting off or wrap some Christmas presents. You could also do what I did and laugh yourself silly at your monkeys taking in their own simple pleasure.

This unassuming red balloon became an afternoons entertainment.

What goes up…

Must come down. Who got to it first each time was the fun part.

Then when Monkey Two got tired of his big brother having longer arms, this happened…SHOVE!

and this…GRAB!

Who needs video games when you have a balloon.They were moving so fast that I was lucky to get any half way clear shots. I could fill this entire post with pictures of those two monkeys’ and their red balloon but you guys are probably wondering what happened to the stew. Okay, here is the rest of the recipe.

After 5 hours peel…

and chop your potatoes. Add to the stew.

Clean your carrots thoroughly…

Remove the tops and bottoms. Then cut into half and on the larger sections quarter lengths. Why not bite size you ask? Because the larger you leave your carrot, the more flavor you will retain.

Make sure you have enough for a hungry monkey to steal. Love you Monkey Two :)

Add the carrots to your stew and cook until your potatoes are tender. Add a little  salt and pepper with your vegetables, even a dash of soy sauce. You may even need to add a little water to bring the level back up.This will take about another 45 minutes.

This is what you will end up with. A scrumptious hearty stew that is just full of flavor.

You can also remove the beef, cut it along the grain…actually it will fall apart it is so tender.

Toast a french roll with Munster cheese and serve like this… YUM!

You will have a lot of stew left over. This is where you can get creative, add your favorite vegetables to the stew. Also step out of the box and add pasta, barley or rice. No matter what you use you will have a delicious vegetable beef soup for tomorrow night.

You just have to love recipes that stretch. I know that they TICKLE me.

Tickled Red