OK, now you don’t have the excuse of not enough time to make an hours-intensive recipe. As far as I know, pretty much the entire world is on lockdown due to the spread of the corona virus. And while this dish takes nearly five hours from start to finish, the pot sits in the oven for 3 1/2 of those hours, leaving you plenty of time to watch whatever show you’re currently bingeing on.
And while it’s getting all happy in the oven, the aromas will be wafting around the house teasing you into a frenzy, but be patient because the end game is truly memorable.
This hearty Beef, Orange and Olive Stew (Boeuf À La Gardiane) from Camargue, in the south of France, is traditionally made with taureau, or bull meat, but beef is a common substitute. Chuck roast is used instead because the fatty cut becomes tender and succulent with simmering.
The stew gets robust flavor from classic Provençal ingredients—red wine, olives, anchovies and garlic. Orange is traditional, too; it lends the braise a brightness that balances its depth and richness. A bold, full-bodied dry red wine such as Côtes du Rhône or syrah is ideal, as it holds its own among the other big flavors. Serve with rice, egg noodles (our choice) or potatoes.
BTW, don’t pull a rookie move and forget to zest the orange before juicing it. It’s much easier to grate the zest from a whole orange than from one that’s been halved and squeezed.
Don’t add all of the carrots to the pot with the beef. Adding some at the beginning gives the stew a subtle sweetness, but after hours of braising, these carrots are spent. More carrots are added near the end of cooking so that they are tender but still flavorful.
NO. 67: Use Less Liquid for More Flavor
Beef, Orange and Olive Stew
Ingredients
- 6-7 lbs. boneless beef chuck roast, well trimmed and cut into 2-inch cubes
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 4 Medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into ½-inch rounds, divided
- 3 Anchovy fillets, patted dry
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 Medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 Medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 Cup pitted kalamata olives, rinsed, patted dry and chopped, divided
- 2½ Cups dry red wine
- 1 Medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 Tbsp. grated orange zest, plus ⅓ cup orange juice
- 2 tsp. red wine vinegar
- 1 Cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Directions
- Heat the oven to 325°F with a rack in the lower-middle position. In a large Dutch oven, toss the beef with 2 tablespoons salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Add ½ the carrots, the anchovies, oil, garlic and onion, then toss. Cover, transfer to the oven and cook for 2 hours.
- Remove the pot from the oven and stir in ½ cup of the olives. Return to the oven uncovered and cook until a knife inserted into a piece of beef meets no resistance, 1 to 1½ hours.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a large bowl, leaving the vegetables in the pot. Set a fine mesh strainer over a fat separator or medium bowl. Pour the meat juices into the strainer, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard the solids. You should have about 2½ cups liquid (we ended up with only 3/4 cup); if needed, add with water.
- Pour the wine into the now-empty pot and bring to a boil over medium-high, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the wine is reduced by half, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, if you strained the meat juices into a bowl, use a spoon to skim off and discard the fat from the surface.
- Pour the defatted meat juices into the pot and add the remaining carrots and the bell pepper. Return to a simmer and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is slightly thickened, 10. (After 10 minutes, cover the pot to maintain the juices and further soften the carrots, cooking for another 15 minutes.)
- Stir in the orange juice and beef. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce begins to cling to the meat, 3 to 6minutes.
- Off heat, stir in the remaining ½ cup olives, the orange zest, vinegar and half of the parsley. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the remaining parsley.
Adapted from a recipe by Milk Street: The New Rules.
Accounting for Taste 