Pot au Feu

 Pot Au Feu

(French Traditional Beef Stew)

For: 8 people

Duration: 2 hours

Difficulty: medium 

Ingredients:

• 600 grams beef chuck
• 4 carrots
• peppercorns
• bouquet garni (bay leaf, thyme, parsley, etc.)
• 1 onion
• 2 or 3 cloves
• 3 leeks
• 2 stalks of celery
• 3 turnips
• 4 potatoes
• cabbage
• mustard

Instructions:

1. To make this stew recipe, start by preparing all the ingredients.
2. In a large heavy bottom pot, put the pieces of meat in cold water and season with coarse salt. Bring to a boil. As soon as it boils, skim several times using a slotted spoon.
3. Before the water comes to a heavy boil, prick an onion with 2 or 3 cloves (no more).
4. When the foam forms, skim the broth well to prevent it from becoming cloudy.
5. Add the whole carrots, or cut in half if they are too big, as well as the onion.
6. Add a teaspoon of peppercorns......and the bouquet garni.
7. Lower the heat and simmer for hour.
8. Peel the potatoes using a potato peeler, and add them to the pot.
9. Add the celery stalks (without the leaves) ..as well as halved turnips and leeks, white and green parts of the latter.
10. Skim again if necessary on the sides of the pot.
11. Let simmer for 30 minutes. Before stopping the cooking, check the firmness of the potatoes (if they are cooked, a knife should stick easily inside). 
12. Serve hot in soup plates, accompanied by pickles and mustard.
13. Tips: Once cooled, degrease the broth with a ladle, and keep it for next use (soup, cooking broth, etc..). If there is any leftover meat, it will be perfectly reusable in a shepherd's pie.