Central Asian Beef Stew

This is another lovely recipe I got from my sweet Russian Friend who grew up in Tajikistan, I went to her house recently and had this lovely slightly spicy beef stew served with noodles. We have had quite a few cold days recently and the kids were off school for ice, so stews are a nice comfort food. Stews are lovely one pot meals and a great way to get lots of seasonal root vegetables in. 

Ingredients:

• one pack of stew beef
• 1/2 a red onion chopped
• 2 stalks of celery sliced 
• 3 cloves of garlic chopped
• 1/2 a teaspoon of cumin
• black pepper to taste around a 1/4 of a teaspoon the more you add the more bite it will have 
• salt to taste 
• one can of diced tomatoes 
• 2 sweet potatoes cubed
• 2 carrots chopped
• a handful of frozen sweetcorn 
• a handful of frozen green beans 
• about 2 cups of water enough to cover the beef and vegetables 

Method:

1. heat a little olive oil add the garlic, celery and onions with the beef and lightly brown the beef for about 7 - 10 minutes
2. then add the cumin and can of tomatoes 
3. add the vegetables and water enough to cover the meat and simmer for 20-30 minutes until soft
4. season with salt and pepper 
5. serve with noodles 
6. enjoy 

The frosty leaves looked really pretty the other morning, winter can be a hard season, but magic is happening - 

January is the quietest month in the garden. ... But just because it looks quiet doesn't mean that nothing is happening. The soil, open to the sky, absorbs the pure rainfall while microorganisms convert tilled-under fodder into usable nutrients for the next crop of plants. The feasting earthworms tunnel along, aerating the soil and preparing it to welcome the seeds and bare roots to come."
- Rosalie Muller Wright, Editor of Sunset Magazine, 1/9

Hugs Rebecca