Posted by Steve Magruder on December 25, 2000 at 14:34:59:
Stevie’s Cola Pot Roast Stew (Revised and Refined)
Using a 6-qt. crock pot – 8 hour preparation (7 hrs. for cooking) – Serves 6 to 8
If you like a pot roast with lots of veggies and a sumptuous, rich broth, then this recipe is for you. My grandmother’s beef stew recipe and many other recipes I’ve tasted and read about through my life inspire this recipe.
2 ½ to 4 lb. fresh sirloin tip roast(s)
1 cup all-purpose flour
red cooking wine
olive oil
1 bay leaf
2 medium yellow onions
2 cloves of garlic
2 celery sticks
6 or 7 carrots
6 medium Yukon Gold (yellow meat) potatoes
¼ tsp. thyme
¼ tsp. rosemary
1 tbsp. salt
2 tsp. – 1 tbsp. black pepper (to taste)
2 cans of Campbell’s Cream of Broccoli soup
1 cup Coca-Cola (or equivalent cola; don’t use “Diet”)
1 beef bouillon cube
2 tbsp. corn starch
Coat the roast with flour on both sides. In a Dutch oven or skillet, with 2 tbsp. olive oil and 2 tbsp. red cooking wine pre-heated, brown the roast on both sides (be sure not to fully cook the meat), adding extra oil and wine as needed (esp. if you’re preparing more than one roast). Place the browned roast in the bottom of the crock pot, and pour in the browning juices. Tear the bay leaf in two, and lay the halves on top of the meat.
Quarter the onions and chop the garlic. Place the onion quarters and chopped garlic into any crevices you can find in the bottom of the crock pot. Finely slice the celery sticks and toss those in evenly over the meat and onions/garlic.
Slice the carrots into pieces roughly 1 to 1 ½ inches in length. Toss the sliced carrots in. Slice the potatoes into pieces roughly 1 inch in width and cut those pieces in half. Leaving the skins on (so they won’t fall apart), toss the potatoes in. All in all, ensure that the pot is filled to the rim with veggies, so add more carrots or potatoes if there’s more room.
Add the thyme, rosemary, salt and black pepper. Then, add both cans of Cream of Broccoli soup and the Coca-Cola.
Add the beef bouillon cube and about 1 cup of water. Ensure that the water line is about 1 ½ inches below the rim of the crock pot, so adjust the water you add as needed.
Turn the crock pot on Low (yes, Low!!). The cooking time will be roughly seven hours, give or take a ½ hour. During the cooking process, you may need to clean up any liquid seeping out above the rim of the pot (esp. if you put too much water in there!).
After four hours of cooking, thoroughly stir the stew, esp. to mix the soup in with the rest of the broth.
Two hours later, about an hour before the cooking time is complete, add the corn starch and stir into the stew broth.
Serving suggestion: Serve with steamed or sautéed fresh green beans and fresh-baked croissants or dinner biscuits.