Every Sunday, I cook a special menu for lunch, because it’s the time of the week wherein our family is complete. My husband always requests dishes with soup. It’s also the time of the week in which we go to the market. I always prepare a 1-week menu list so that I won’t be having problems in thinking of what to cook on a particular day. It would also be easier for us every time we go to the market because we only go the market one a week.

Last Sunday’s menu is my version of Beef Stew. I’ve been thinking of what to name this dish because it’s similar to beef pochero. The difference is that it does not contain chorizo and garbanzos, and I also omitted the saba.

I also made some research and found out that:

The distinctions between stew, soup, and casserole are fine ones. The ingredients of a stew may be cut into larger pieces than a those of a soup and retain more of their individual flavours; a stew may have thicker liquid than a soup, and more liquid than a casserole; a stew is more likely to be eaten as a main course than as a starter, unlike soup; and a stew can be cooked on either the stove top (or range) or in the oven, while casseroles are almost always cooked in the oven, and soups are almost always cooked on the stovetop. – Source Wikipedia

Since some of the ingredients for pochero were omitted and learned the difference between stew and casserole, I decided to call it Beef Stew.

In cooking Pochero, I normally use fresh tomatoes, lots of fresh tomatoes. A month ago, I bought a can of stewing tomato, without knowing where to use it. So I decided to use it on my beef stew.

This is one the most satisfying lunch we had. We were so filled and almost finished all the cooked rice and muntik na maubusan si yaya, buti na lang may natira pa! Hehehe

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 kilo of braising beef

1 onion

1 can of stewing tomatoes

2 pieces potatoes, quartered

1 large carrot, chopped

Half head of cabbage

2 bunches of native pechay

15 pcs of baguio beans, cut lengthwise

A stalk of onion leeks

Fish sauce

Ground pepper

2 tbsp Cornstarch (for thickener)

Oil for sautéing

Procedure:

1. Pan-sear the beef before putting it in the pressure cooker. However, it is best if you cook it slowly. Since I had no enough time to cook this, I just put it in the pressure cooker. Let it stand for 45 minutes. Set aside.

2. While the beef cooks, prepare all the ingredients to save time.

3. Sauté onion, tomatoes, potatoes, and carrots. Then add the beef. Put the broth and season with fish sauce and freshly ground pepper. Let it simmer until the vegetables are almost done.

4. Thicken it with cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup of water.

5. Add the cabbage, pechay, baguio beans, and the leeks. Season it according to your taste and simmer it for a few minutes, but make sure you do not over cook the vegetables.

6. Serve hot with patis and calamansi.

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