Butternut Beef Stew with Pearl Couscous.
Ready, set, go: who is the first person you want to share some stew with?
Besides Adele. I’d probably say Adele.
Because how much is that song just kill.ing.it. right now?! Ah. It’s so darn good.
But anyone… who would you pick? And real people, not imaginary people. Invisible internet friends count though. OF COURSE.
Did you have imaginary friends as a kid? I totally did.
Want to know their names? (Probably not but too bad.)
Ball. And R. Ball and R.
Like, what? Where on earth did I get that?
Hellllllo from the other side, Ball and R. (Get it? I’ll go away now.)
GUYS. It’s soup weather. STEW weather, if you will. Soup weather is one thing but stew weather is another and I’ve declared it stew weather ASAP. I can’t take any more rainy gloom so I’m just going to swim through my bowl of butternut stew. Doggy paddle, probably, because I’m weighed down with Halloween candy and can it please just be the weekend yet so that can get out of my house.
Please.
Stew deets…
This beef. I made it like my mom makes her pot roast, which is tender and fall-apart good – and right on the stovetop! It takes a few hours as expected and does require a little maintenance, so you can throw the whole thing in the oven if that works better for you. Or even the slow cooker and do a last minute transfer, but then you sacrifice a little flavor. Whomp whomp.
Um, speaking of the slow cooker, I have been a slow cooker snob the last two years and basically refused to make dinner using it. Because everything in the slow cooker eventually ends up tasting like “slow cooker.” Do you feel me?
BUT. Being the ginormous hypocrite that I am, I made a slow cooker meal about three weeks ago and have been using it ever since. Maybe it’s the baby thing (wah wah, I have no time, wah) or just that we’ve been extra busy, but I’ve been tossing things in there and actually… eating them later.
You can do that with this if you really want to, but I do prefer to brown my beef, onions, mushrooms and all that in the same pot. Why must I make everything difficult, whyyyy.
I’m not even going to apologize for the butternut anymore. It’s just a given. Except saying that kind of IS apologizing so I’m going to stop being passive aggressive right now.
Oh! But if you hate the butternut, go for sweet potatoes. Or go for this cabernet braised short rib stew.
That. That… I have no words. It’s not super different from this version though, which is excellent.
So let’s talk about the couscous instead. I LOVE pearl couscous. It has to be pearl though – I don’t really care for the tinier version. Pearl couscous was the first kind I tried ages ago and it hooked me instantly. I prefer it to quinoa too, so take that millennials!
All you do is stir it right into the soup (a whole wheat version!!) a few minutes before serving and it gets all plump and wonderful. It adds another element to this itty bitty hug in a bowl and takes barely any time at all. Like an updated beef and barley, maybe?
Whatever it is, I will gladly take it. All of it!
Beef and Butternut Stew with Pearl Couscous
Ingredients
- 3 pound beef chuck roast
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup pumpkin beer, dry red wine or your liquid of choice
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 16 ounces sliced mushrooms
- 2 cups cubed, 1-inch butternut squash
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 cups low-sodium beef stock
- 2 cups cold water
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup whole wheat pearl couscous
Instructions
- Heat a large stock pot over medium high heat. Season the roast with the salt and the pepper evenly (adding a bit more if needed). Place 2 tablespoons butter and olive oil in the skillet. Add the roast and sear on all sides until golden brown. Reduce the heat and pour in the beer, wine or liquid of your choice (stock or water is fine!). Cover the pot and cook on low heat for 3 to 4 hours, turning once or twice, until the beef is falling apart. Keep an eye on the beef and if you need more liquid, add it. You want the liquid to be slightly simmering the entire time. If you want to make this process a bit easier, you can cut the roast in half before searing.
- When the roast is falling apart, transfer it to a large bowl with the remaining liquid in the pot. Set the heat to medium-low and add the remaining tablespoon of butter. Add the onion and garlic, stirring to coat. Cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms are slightly soft, another 5 minutes. Stir in the butternut squash. Add in the nutmeg, shredded beef (and liquid) and stock to the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil then cover and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, or until the squash just softens.
- Place the cold water in a shaker bottle. Add the flour to the water and cover the bottle (or jar) and shake for 30 seconds to make a slurry. Add the slurry to the stew and stir well. Increase the heat a bit until the stew is simmering. Let it cook for 30 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and season additionally if needed – you may need a bit more salt, you may not. 15 minutes before serving, stir in the pearl couscous. Cook for 10 or 15 minutes, just until the couscous softens. Serve with freshly chopped herbs on top.
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45 Comments on “Butternut Beef Stew with Pearl Couscous.”
I’m seriously going NUTS over the new Adele song … like singing on the top of my lungs nuts!! I can’t wait until her album comes out!!
I’m also going crazy over this stew … is there anything as comforting as a big bowl of stew on a fall night?!?
I adore beef stew…especially at this time of year…and your version looks amazing.
I will be trying it very soon. I am curious…where would I find whole wheat pearl couscous? I live is a fairly large metro area and have plenty of grocery store choices but have never seem this product…only the typical white flour version. Thanks!
hi nancy! i found this version at my local grocery store: http://www.amazon.com/Riceselect-Whole-Wheat-Couscous-10-72-Ounce/dp/B0038ABH1U
i think bob’s red mill has one too!
Did you also get 100 inches (roughly) of rain yesterday? Totally stew weather! This is how I make beef or pork for stews and tacos; so flavourful and delicious when it can slowly braise for hours. AHH, perfection!
I don’t use a crockpot for the reason you mentioned. What temp and time would you use to do this in the oven?
I totally feel ya on the crockpot food tastes like crockpot thing-we used to call it the gross pot growing up because my mom would just throw in random meat and vegetables and call it stew (nothing like the stew above…which looks amazing).
however as an adult who had a job with slightly crazy hours and a husband who likes to eat dinner (weird right?) the crockpot became my new bff–I love making baked ziti in it (what?! it’s a thing), chili, and pulled pork–agreed the flavor may be a weeeee bit less, but it’s still pretty amazing!
So take that millenials! LOL
Yum! This looks so perfect for chilly days!
Dani | http://www.styledvariety.com
i love how colorful this looks! i’m really loving tori kelly right now (her album is just amazing and she seems so genuine in real life) that i’d pick her if i could eat stew with someone. i think i’ll get more excited about adele once her album comes out (:
Long time reader, 1st time commenter. I am SO happy it is stew season on your blog! Last fall I was 1st trimester pregnant and made so many of your soup/stew recipes, perfect for those days of weird cravings and nausea. BUT now with the baby I NEED my slow cooker. Would I just brown the beef and throw everything in together? I have zero culinary genius so would love explicit instructions!
I got you beat – my pals were Wiggum, Wahgum, and the Wiggum-Wahgum Dog. Not really sure if that’s how you spell them because I was only 3 and could not spell, so we sounded it out. Love the stew recipe because butternut squash is my favorite along with everything else you put in it. Except I have never tried couscous, but now’s as good a time as ever.
Well this looks incredible.. I wanna eat that whole pot of the beef + mushrooms pre butternut with a fork. Alsoooo, don’t know if you’ve already seen this but it totally reminded me of you:
http://www.studiodiy.com/2015/09/23/throwback-diy-lisa-frank-costumes/
Ok, I’m officially on the look out for whole wheat pearl couscous now, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before! I still haven’t used my slow cooker enough, but I love that my kind (All-Clad) has a cast-iron insert, so that I can still brown on the stove and then transfer to the machine, because the browning is SO Important for flavor! :)
This looks so good! Please share your slow-cooker recipes with us!!!!
Ooh yes, I love braised beef and pearl couscous so this sounds just about perfect! I just made a roast and it left so much good flavour in the bottom of the dish I roasted it in so I’m just imagining how could that would be in a stew. Mmmm
Sign me up for team pearl couscous! Also really good in salads. If anyone has trouble finding this in their grocery stores (I did the first time), check the kosher food section.
This looks so yummy. Thank you for another delicious stew recipe!
Beef stew is one of my favorite meals in the winter… I think I’m going to need to make this one really soon! It looks delicious!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Ok. You had an imaginary friend, then you need to see Inside Out. I dunno if you’re for the pixar emotional toll but this one will wreck you. In a good way. This soup is speaking to me. We have a lot of leaves to rake this weekend and I think a bowl of this would be perfect afterwards.
Is there something you would suggest replacing with if your not a mushroom fan?
I’m currently making this stew! Not a mushroom fan either. I know your comment is from super long ago but I bought fresh green beans as a replacement hoping to add some greens to this amazing recipe :)
besides the obvious – the stew looks amazing and i will be making it soon! i couldn’t stop with the adele song until i heard this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=em1FKI3soBk
and now i can’t stop with this and seriously how cute is she!?!
¡Fantástica receta! Fácil de preparar, con buenas fotografías y un resultado final delicioso. Me encantan. Muchas gracias por compartirla con todos/as.
/ http://www.mascasaonline.com
What a wonderfully creative stew! Perfect for this time of year :) Pinned!
Yeah, so my imaginary friend’s name was Honkerconk. Yup. You read that right…
I second the comment about the mushrooms, any suggestions of what else to add besides them? :)
Thanks!!
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Love this! Our electric stove is a pain and unreliable. If I was doing this in the oven, what temperature would you do and for how long (for the meat part)?
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Agreed you never have to apologise for butternut, most especially if you cook it with this beef.
Simply scrumptious. Made it Halloween night and it was waiting on the stove after a cool evening outside handing out candy. At the end of cooking I add a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste and another tablespoon or two of butter. It melted in and lifted the stew to another level. Try it. This stew recipe is a keeper.
Pinecone and I were imaginary friends. No clue where that one came from. So far my kids don’t seem to have imaginary friends, and I hope they don’t. My mother still loves to bring that embarrassing story up to my dates…. sheesh.
This looks really good, I keep kosher though, and was wondering if there was a good substitution for butter in this recipe?
I made this last night – exactly as the recipe says except just reg pearl couscous (had to climb the grocery shelves to get the last container in the store). Delicious!! Makes enough for an army even though it says 4 servings – we’ll be eating it for days, but that is fine cause it is soooo good. Comfort food at tit’s best!
it’s :) oops
Any suggestions as to how to veggi-fy this recipe?
I bought meat that is already cut up :( how should I go about this now?
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I enjoyed your banter as much as the recipe, thanks for making me smile today.
Hi there, super interested in trying this recipe! By chance do you have the nutrition facts/information? I’m watching certain parts of my diet and although this *should* be okay to indulge in, I just want to make sure.
Thank you!
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Great mix of ingredients
This is our superbowl food for tomorrow’s game!
Can you confirm that the 4 cups of stock + the 1 cup of liquid of choice should all go in during the 3-4 hours the beef is simmering?
Thanks!
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