Janice's Italian Beef Stew

The nutrition facts for this wonderful comforting stew can be found at Calorie Count!

Italian Beef Stew

Ingredients:

(Makes 8 servings)

3 pounds sirloin, cubed

5  tomatoes, squished

1 medium  onion, chopped

2 c  carrots, cubed

3 medium  potatoes, cubed

½ c  celery, sliced

2 t  basil

1 t  oregano

½ t  black pepper

1 T  olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Trim all visible fat from the sirloin and cube, place in oven suitable pot with an oven proof lid. You could brown the meat, but I usually don’t.

Squish and add the tomatoes. You can use 1 can of crushed tomatoes if you like, but Italians just squish those tomatoes up by hand! The number is an estimate; you want to have just enough liquid to almost cover – the beef will add its own liquid and you don’t want the stew thin.

Chop the onion, carrots, potatoes, and celery and stir into the pot. Another option here is to sauté first, sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. It’s delicious either way

Add the spices and stir.

Add the olive oil (this is replacing some of the fat you trimmed off and it’s much better for you) and stir gently.

Cover and cook in the preheated oven for at least 2 1/2 hours. Taste after 2 hours, test to see if the veggies are cooking well, and adjust seasonings if necessary.