Jamaican Beef Stew
Ingredients
For the marinade:
2 1/2 pounds well-marbled chuck beef stew meat, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
1 large yellow onion, chopped
5 medium scallions, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, rough chopped
3 large whole thyme sprigs
1 teaspoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon minced scotch bonnet or habanero peppers
1 teaspoon hot sauce
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon sugar
To prepare the stew:
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 bay leaves
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally into 1/4 inch rounds
2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 to 1 inch chunks
1/2 cup sliced scallions, plus more for garnish
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
1/4 cup sliced onion
Directions
In a large bowl, add the cubed beef, onion, scallion, garlic cloves, thyme, ginger, scotch bonnet pepper, hot sauce, Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, allspice and sugar. Combine with your hands to thoroughly coat the meat in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate one hour and up to overnight.
Set a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the oil. Use a slotted spoon or your hands remove the meat from the beef marinade leaving any large pieces of onion, scallion, garlic, ginger or thyme in the bowl. Reserve the marinade. You will use it later.
Sear the beef in batches on all sides, 4-5 minutes per side, setting the browned pieces aside in a clean bowl or on a plate as you go. You want to do this in batches so you can get a good sear. If you overcrowd the pan the beef won’t brown properly.
The sugar from the seasoning will make the brown bits on the bottom of the pan very dark brown, almost burning — don’t worry! This is the color we want. As long as you don’t have an unappetizing burnt smell, you’re still in good shape.
If it looks like it’s turning almost black, reduce your heat. You can even deglaze the pan between batches with a bit of the chicken stock and remove that liquid to the bowl with the seared meat before searing the remaining pieces.
Once all of the beef has browned, add the marinade to the pot and turn off the heat. Use a wooden spoon, and the residual heat, to scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
Once all of the bits have been scraped from the bottom, add the beef back to the pot along with the stock, ketchup, soy sauce, and bay leaves. If you had trouble removing all of the bits, the stock will help you scrape up any last pieces.
Turn the burner on to medium heat and bring the stew to a simmer. Cover the pot, reduce heat to low or medium low and simmer gently until beef is tender, about 1 hour and the beef is tender.
Once the beef is tender, remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Add the carrots and potatoes, stir well. Cover the pot. Simmer on low to medium low until the vegetables can be easily pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes.
Add the remaining scallion, red pepper, and onion and cook uncovered for 5-10 minutes or until tender.
To thicken the stew, you can remove the lid and reduce the cooking liquid until you reach your desired consistency or take a few of the tender potatoes and use a fork to smash against the side of the pot. This will give the stew body.
Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper. Garnish with additional chopped scallions and serve alone or over rice. This stew tastes even better the next day!
