Triple B – Beyond Belief Beef

The wooden spoon helps keep it from boiling over.

Do you like melt-in-your-mouth roast beef? Wouldn’t you love to have that warm, savory piece of heaven on a soft tasty roll? This is one of my favorite recipes, Beyond Belief Beef. It takes all day to cook and it will heat the house up. I can only make it in the fall and winter because it is just too hot in the summer. We made our first batch of the season this past Saturday and it was like Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas all rolled into one awesome day. Eat it on a soft roll with your favorite sandwich condiments or eat it naked on a plate. Either way, it’s fantastic!

Beyond Belief Beef

(Prep time, 15 minutes. Cook time, 5 hours. Yes, hours.)

Ingredients:

• 3 Packages of Stew Beef, trimmed lean (or sirloin strips)
• 2 Large Onions, chopped
• 5 Cloves Garlic, chopped
• 2 Cups Worcestershire Sauce, divided
• 1 Tablespoon “Better Than Bouillon” Beef Base
• Lots of Water (about 2 gallons total, added as needed)

Directions:

Peel and chop onions and garlic. Add to large stew pot or dutch oven with heavy base. This pot will be on the stovetop for five hours, it needs to take the heat and not scorch your meat.

Trim stew beef until only small bits of fat remain. Add to stew pot along with 1 cup of worcestershire sauce and beef base. Add enough water to completely cover beef.

I use tap water. If your water has a lot of iron or sulpher (it tastes yucky), you might want to use bottled water. Have at least 2 gallons on hand if you are using bottled water.

Spoon this yucky foam off

Place on stove top and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Do NOT walk away from your stove. If this boils over, it will cause a mess that will take hours to clean up. Stand there and watch it carefully. As it begins to boil, a yucky foam will form on top. Spoon this foam off into a bowl and discard.

Once the foam is spooned off and beef is boiling in a gentle, rolling boil, cover with lid ajar to let steam escape. Set a kitchen timer and check your beef every thirty minutes. Stir and add more water (until beef is covered) every thirty minutes for the next four hours.

After four hours, add the second cup of worcestershire sauce. Your beef will start to fall apart when you stir it around the 4 1/2 to 5 hour mark. When it starts to fall apart on its own, let the water begin to boil off.

Do NOT let it boil dry. If it does, it will be ruined. You want your beef soft and juicy so make sure you don’t boil the juice completely off. Leave at least one cup of juice in the bottom of your pan. Mike has me scoop out an extra cup of the broth for him to dump over his bread.

Serve on a soft roll with your favorite condiments. I use mustard and sharp cheddar cheese. Mike eats it naked with lots of juice. Some of our friends put horseradish on it. I sometimes use roasted garlic hummus on my roll (that recipe is coming up next).  Served warm, it’s beyond belief, melt-in-your-mouth beef.

It tastes even better than it looks!

Sunday Football Chili

Mike and I are football fanatics. I start this chili at half-time during the first game on Sunday and it’s ready to eat by the end of the second game. This is a low to medium hot (spicy) chili because I don’t enjoy chili that is nothing but hot spice. It’s perfect in front of the television with a beer and a side of crunchy garlic toast for dipping!

Sunday Football Chili

(Prep time, 30 minutes. Cooking time, approximately two hours)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Pounds Ground Beef
• 2 Onions, chopped and divided into two piles
• 1 Green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 Jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 6 Cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 Can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with zesty green chilis
• 2 Cans (28 oz each) crushed tomatoes with roasted garlic
• 1 Can (40.5 oz) dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 Can (15.5 oz) light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 3 Tablespoons hot pepper spread
• 1/2 Cup Worcestershire sauce
• 3 Tablespoons Sriracha hot chili sauce
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 Tablespoon ground black pepper
• 2 Teaspoons salt
• 1 Teaspoon onion powder
• 3 Tablespoons chili powder
• 1/2 Tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 Cup water

Directions:

In a heavy stockpot, put 2 Tbsps olive oil and one chopped onion (the second chopped onion is added with the beans and tomatoes later). Turn burner on medium high and let onion start to sweat. When the onion starts to get soft, put the ground beef into the pan and cook over medium high heat until beef is cooked through. Make sure to chop beef up with your spoon or spatula until you have small chunks.

Once the beef is completely cooked, add the rest of the ingredients to your stock pot. Make sure beans are drained and rinsed before adding them to the pot.

Stir well. The chili will be thick, but it will loosen up once the tomatoes cook down a little. Cover, leaving lid slightly ajar to let steam escape and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once it starts boiling, reduce heat and let simmer for one and half to two hours (until beans and peppers are soft). Stir frequently so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot and burn. About an hour in, I will pull a small spoonful to test the spice mix. Adjust as needed to get the spicy heat you like for chili.

Serve with crackers, fresh bread, or toasted garlic bread. You can garnish with shredded cheese and/or diced raw onion, but I’m a purist and enjoy it naked. It tastes even better on the second day. Yum!