A rustic Italian beef stew recipe or ” Stufato di Manzo ” with red wine gravy, tomatoes, mushrooms and potatoes. Italy in a pot!
Who’s bringing the wine ? I used all mine in the stew, so it is a drunkard style dinner tonight!
Just like in the case of a rugu alla Bolognese, there are endless variations of Italian beef stew recipes as well.
From family to family, from region to region, from one season to the next, this one pot wonder changes like a chameleon. I sure do hope that makes sense.
I have about 10 different variations up my sleeve, but the one I’m sharing today is a classic that the Batman loves. A riff on this winter blood orange beef and butternut squash stew.
As related as all the recipes are, they also stand on their own, with their unique rustic charm, flavors and textures shining through.
A few variations on this include:
- potatoes or gnocchi
- polenta dumplings
- ravioli pasta or tortellini
- green peas, lentils, borlotti beans, or risotto rice
- finished with gremolata
- with fennel and pancetta
- peppers and cipollini onions
- served over creamy polenta (my favorite)
The #1 secret of a perfect beef stew is the cut of meat!
Ideally made with organic, grass-fed marbled chuck roast, cut up into smaller pieces that can withstand the cooking time of 2+ hours.
We use a simple process of braising the chuck roast with aromatics in red wine, until it literally falls apart when stabbed with a fork. To that we add mushrooms, and rainbow carrots, and some quickly grilled scallions to brighten up the entire meal at the end.
Depending on your taste you can go for more gravy or less. I prefer to let the entire stew reduce uncovered at the end for about 15 minutes or so. This way the liquid will reduce and thicken up, while the carrots and potatoes will get lovely little golden roasted edges.
- 3 1 /2 lb chuck roast beef cut into 1 inch cubes
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 10 cloves garlic
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 1/2 c red wine
- 3 - 4 c water
- 15 oz fire roasted tomatoes -diced
- 4 cloves whole
- 1 bunch thyme
- 1 leaf bay
- 1 sprig sprig
- 1 large carrot -diced
- 1 bunch small rainbow carrots (tops discarded)
- 4 golden potatoes diced (gnocchi or polenta)
- 8 oz portobella or wild mushrooms
- 1 bunch scallions or spring onions
- 2 tsp sea salt + more to taste
- 3 tbsp flour all purpose
- Preheat your oven to 350”F
- In a large cast iron dutch oven add a lug of olive oil and sear the garlic cloves until golden all over. Transfer to a plate.
- Add the onion to the pan and saute until it starts to caramelize, about 15 minutes.
- Then add the beef cubes to the pot with the onions and sprinkle with the flour over the top. Toss to coat well all over and cook for a few minutes.
- Add the thyme, rosemary, bay leaf and cloves to the pot together with the red wine.
- Bring everything to a gentle simmer and add the garlic cloves back to the pot. Cook for 10 minutes until the wine has reduced a little.
- Stir in the fire roasted tomatoes, sea salt and the water. Cover with a tight lid and transfer to the preheated oven for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours have passed, carefully add chopped carrots, rainbow carrots, potatoes and mushrooms to the stew, give it a gentle stir, cover and cook another 25 to 30 minutes until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through and the meat falls apart when stabbed with a fork.
- Meanwhile clean the scallions and cut them in half. Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Toss to coat and pan sear them in a cast iron skillet until nice golden charr marks form. About 3 minutes.
- Ladle the beef stew into bowls, sprinkle with the parsley and a nice drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Divide the scallions between bowls and serve hot with lots of crusty garlic bruschetta to soak up all the gravy.
For a Paleo version of this stew, simply omit the flour and potatoes.
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Sabrina @ Dinner, then Dessert
September 29, 2015 at 6:35 pmThis beef stew looks like the perfect meal now that it is cooling down in a hurry around here! It also looks gorgeous! I need to make this! Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Florentina
September 30, 2015 at 9:52 pmYes you must put it on the to do list ! We’ll come over 😉
Katalina @ Peas & Peonies
September 29, 2015 at 7:45 pmCan I say how amazingly delicious this looks! I just want to cuddle under a blanket and eat this for the rest of fall!
Florentina
September 30, 2015 at 9:51 pmYes, that happens a lot around here, blankets and stews are such a treasure xo’s
J @ A Hot Southern Mess
September 30, 2015 at 12:57 pmOh! You had me at red wine gravy! Yum! I can’t imagine how delicious this looks in person if it looks this good on a computer screen!
Florentina
September 30, 2015 at 9:51 pmIt was so good, we wiped that pot clean with lots of crusty bread 😉
Craig Olivo
November 12, 2016 at 3:28 pmI’m going to try this tomorrow, I know it’s going to be delisioso
Florentina
November 13, 2016 at 12:24 pmEnjoy! Hope you love it ~ Florentina
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef
October 1, 2015 at 5:53 amThat is a potful of love, no doubt about it!
Florentina
October 1, 2015 at 1:56 pmOh yes, the symbol of comfort food, yum! 😉
Bryan H.
October 1, 2015 at 1:18 pmI can’t get enough of this delicious dish!
Florentina
October 1, 2015 at 1:56 pmYou are gonna have to make some more now 😉
sweetashoneynz
October 2, 2015 at 1:17 amIt is looks very similar to french beef bourguignon, beef, red wine, slow cooked! yum! My mum was always making this on Sunday when I lived in France. I will definitely try your recipe. Looks delish. Carine.
Florentina
October 3, 2015 at 12:06 amOh yes, definitely related, that’s the beauty of rustic food, I just love it. report back when you make it xo’s
Jane
October 4, 2015 at 9:54 amSuch a perfect dish for the cooler weather we are now having. Wine adds such a wonderful flavor to stews, I recall my mother using it quite frequently in her recipes. I’ve not heard of rainbow carrots, is their flavor different from regular carrots? Look forward to trying your recipe!
Florentina
October 4, 2015 at 1:16 pmThanks Jane. Rainbow carrots are just on the sweeter side, I love their rustic look and size, it adds a little something to the final dish.
Franglais kitchen
October 17, 2015 at 1:35 pmwow! the pictures are beautiful and this recipe is just perfect for this time of year. Bookmarking and pinned to my Fall recipes board!
Florentina
October 17, 2015 at 6:23 pmThanks so much. Hope you are having a great delicious weekend 🙂
Steve Heikkila
October 29, 2015 at 6:54 pmThis looks so delicious. I really love how rustic and inviting this looks with the carrots and onions left whole. It’s gorgeous.
Jennie V
March 15, 2016 at 5:02 pmThis looks like the garden in a pot. So delicious! I will definitely try this recipe soon!
Florentina
March 15, 2016 at 9:25 pmThank you Jennie, hope you give it a try ! Have a great week!
B J Barickman
July 12, 2016 at 6:50 pmThis is very nearly my grandfather’s recipe for stufato di manzo, But his recipe also calls for sedano, funghi diversi, oregano, and fettine di pancetta as well as slivers of roaste dred pepper. Doesn’t matter. You’ve got a great recipe here. All your recipes, for that matter, are great.
Florentina
July 15, 2016 at 1:20 pmHi BJ, thanks so much for stopping by. I also add wild mushrooms to this when available, depends on the season in California. I try to keep the recipes as simple as possible without sacrificing the flavor. So glad you enjoy the blog recipes here ~ Florentina
Tara
December 28, 2017 at 5:09 pmI rarely write reviews online, but I wanted to let you know this will be my new stew recipe forever. Rich and flavorful, and the charred spring onions add a whole new dimension.
My toddlers will grow up with at least one good memory of my cooking – thank you!
Florentina
January 14, 2018 at 1:58 pmThank you so much Tara! ~ Florentina Xo’s