I may have painted myself into a corner of the kitchen
I have promised my brother that there will be beef stew & dumplings in the house in the next 72 hours. The dumplings are easy enough – that’s why we have this magic stuff called Bisquick. The stew? Well, it occurred to me that I have never actually made beef stew. How does one spend near 35 years on this planet and not make beef stew? I don’t know, but somehow I managed it. I don’t have a recipe and I’d just as soon wing it, cause that’s more fun anyway.
The basics of it are easy enough – beef, carrots, onions, corn, potatoes. Lots of potatoes. Salt, pepper, worchestershire, garlic, thyme, bay leaves. Where it is going to get interesting is the liquid. How much and what? Water, stock, beer, wine? I’ve looked over lots of different recipes and the proportions of beef/vegetables to liquid are all over the place. Figure start with less and add until it it’s right. (Not quite sure how I will be gauging “right” but I figure I’ll know it when I see it.)
I’ll take notes so if it comes out well, I’ll remember what I did next time. Or if it’s awful, what NOT to do next time.