Easy Eats

Sometimes you just have lot of somewhat limp vegetables in the fridge and a surplus of tomato products in the cupboard. Solution: Stew! Make a ton, and freeze the rest for later. Not a real all-out recipe, I just slapped this together. Even forgot to take good pictures.

Ingredients (very flexible):

• 1 sort of beef: ground beef, beef cubes, tips, cheap steaks… (cut up into chunks if needed)
• Vegetable Oil (2 teaspoons)
• Assorted root vegetables: Onions, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes… (cut up into chunks)
• Tomato products: Tomato Paste, Crushed Tomatoes, Diced Tomatoes, Tomato Sauce…
• Couple of cans of chicken or beef broth (optional, but recommended)

Directions (also very loose):

1. Heat large pot on medium-high, add oil.
2. Add meat, and cook until brown on all sides.
3. Add in all the tomato products you have. I usually some half-used cans of tomato paste, and some extra can of crushed tomatoes. Don’t used jarred spaghetti sauce, though.
3. Add all the broth that you have, and fill up half the pot the rest of the way with water as needed. I used up some chicken broth. You can also use bullion cubes if you got ‘em.
4. Turn the heat to high, and wait until it just starts to boil.
5. Add in all your root vegetables except for the potatoes, and turn the heat down to med-low.
6. Simmer the stew for half and hour. If you have potatoes, add them now. This way the potatoes won’t turn to mush.
7. Simmer for another 20-30 minutes, and taste along the way. Add salt & pepper as you like.

(click to enlarge)

Cost:
Less than $10 for sure, more like $5 tops for me. Main cost is the meat. I always stock up on tomato products on the cheap when they go on sale. It ends up being like $1 per serving!

Comments:
I usually make this on a weekend, and then portion them out into plastic containers and let them cool (see pic). Then I move them into the freezer, where they end up being tasty microwave-ready meals. Add in some crusty bread, and some parsley from the garden, and you’re good to go!