Italian Beef Stew

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc., Campbell’s® , Lipton, Premium Crackers, Theraflu and TYLENOL®. All opinions are mine alone. #SickDaySolutions #CollectiveBias

‘Tis the season! No, we’ve made it through the actual holidays and we are continuing into cold and flu season which is the complete opposite of the fun had just weeks ago. I feel like cold symptoms appear so easily here in North Carolina because the temperature changes so drastically. You can be in 70 degree weather one day and by the time you reach the night of the next day, it’s snowing. That can make your immune system run amuck.

I have many tools in my arsenal to feel better, from medicines to hearty meals to those munchies that bring back childhood get-well memories. I feel like any cold of mine doesn’t last very long and for that I’m grateful!

Today I’m sharing my Nana Lucy’s Italian beef stew recipe, as well as those products I’ve always turned to so I can get back on my feet in no time.

Some of those products (purchased from Kroger) include: Campbell’s® Tomato Soup (of course, I always have a grilled cheese with it!), Lipton Bedtime Bliss Herbal Supplement (with chamomile, mint and orange peels, which is great because who else feels worse at night when you’re sick?), Premium Soup & Oyster Crackers (a perfect accompaniment to soup, plus I remember my great grandmother having these in the house all the time), Theraflu Daytime Severe Cold & Cough Powders (definitely some powerful relief here), and TYLENOL® Cold + Flu Severe in Warming Honey Lemon (#1 doctor recommended pain relief brand, and for good reason).

I have these stocked in my house before cold and flu season even arrives because no one likes having to go out shopping for solutions when you’re achy and don’t feel well.

But, one thing I will do when I’m sick is make my Nana Lucy’s beef stew. It’s hearty, you can make a whole bunch of it, it freezes well, and it’s just one of those feel good dishes for me. Made in the slow cooker, you just have to prep everything and throw it in together, forgetting about it for a good 6-8 hours. The only time you’re standing over a hot stove is to brown that beef stew meat, an essential step in the process if you ask me.

Then you’re throwing that into a slow cooker with potatoes, carrots, green peppers, onions and garlic, and a tomato base with tomato sauce and paste. You can add a splash of red wine or, as we do it, Marsala cooking wine. The recipe I have makes a lot, but I find that when one person is sick in the house, it doesn’t take long for everyone else to catch it. You can also adjust the ingredients depending on your taste, so if you love potatoes, or have a thing for stewed carrots.

This beef stew can be eaten by itself or with rice, and one of my favorite ways to change it up when I’ve been eating the stew for a couple of days in a row is to actually toss it with cooked spaghetti. It becomes like a beef stew chili mac and it’s delicious!

If the cold has already hit your home, may you find some relief soon!

Print Recipe

Italian Beef Stew

A hearty, filling beef stew from an Italian great-grandmother.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds beef stew meat
• 1 ½ tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 5 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 6 red potatoes, chopped into chunks
• 1 15-ounce can chopped tomatoes with onion and garlic
• 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1 14.5-ounce can beef broth
• 2 packets of Goya Sazon seasoning (this is a seasoning packet found in most Latin sections of the grocery store, but there are recipes out there where you can make your own)
• ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• Splash of Marsala cooking wine (optional)
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Season the stew meat with salt and pepper and place in zip top bag with flour. Seal bag and shake/massage to coat the stew meat. Heat up the olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat, then add the beef stew. It doesn’t need to cook all the way (that’ll be done in the slow cooker), but you want to brown on all sides. Once browned, add to slow cooker along with any residual juices from the pan.
2. Add all other ingredients to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
3. Cook on high for 1 hour, then reduce to low for 6-8 hours. The beef stew is done when the meat is tender and potatoes are cooked through.

Campbell’s® – © 2018 CSC LP Lipton – © 2018 Unilever Theraflu – Read and follow label directions. Theraflu is for use in adults 12 years and older. Use products only as directed. TYLENOL® – ® Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. 2017. Use products only as directed. The makers of TYLENOL® remind you to use only one medicine with acetaminophen at a time.