Quince are harvested here in Australia from April to May but can keep in the fridge for up to three months. Quinces are often made into a jelly, paste or sweet desserts but it was from Dimitri who I met in Queensland a few months ago that I got a savoury beef recipeidea for them. I had such success with his lazy housewife's moussaka that I decided to give the quinces a go in the other recipe he gave me, beef and quince with red sauce.
It was actually his description at the end that did it. He described the recipe as "You should have a meal where the meat is tender with a lovely thick red sauce with your potatoes or quince fruit." Doesn't that sound absolutely, insanely luscious? I read the recipe - it seemed simple, actually truth be told perhaps too simple so I only made half a batch of this lest it not work out. I shouldn't have worried. Yes it is easy but it is also wonderfully comforting and full of flavour. The sauce cooks down so that it is beautifully thick but not dry, the beef is so tender and the quinces take only a short time until they too blend into the rubied stew with the soft chunks of melting beef.
A quince is a fruit that you see around the Autumn Winter season and I saw some for $2.49 a kilo so I grabbed them eagerly. They're a great fruit but they can only be eaten when cooked and the skin contains a lot of pectin which is why it is great for jellies and pastes.
A few readers have asked me how the exercise sessions are going with my personal trainer. For the most part they're actually quite fun (I promise that I haven't been drinking) and for the first time during winter I haven't gained any weight which is somewhat of a major miracle. It's not for lack of trying. Every night I sit down to a cup of hot chocolate and a warming meal. But my thrice weekly workouts with my trainer Nina are hard and I often complain the whole time about wanting to go to sleep on the mat that she brings but she won't have a bar of it. "Push!!" she says to me sweetly but firmly.
I am trying to lure her to the dark side though. She told me that she wasn't much of a cook so I've been sending her recipes to make and so far, she's made a success of most of them including her biggest triumph, a flourless chocolate cake. Sometimes she forgets to adjust quantities to suit the amount of items that she has and sometimes I do have to explain some ingredients to her. One day she asked me what I was cooking and I told her that it was a beef and quince stew.
"Oh is that like a bird?" she asked unsure about the quince. I had to giggle, I think she mistook it for quail which was very cute.
So tell me Dear Reader, are you glad that winter is almost over?
Step 1 - Cut the beef into small pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat a large cast iron pot with the oil and brown the beef in two batches. Place all of the beef back in the pot and add the tomatoes, cinnamon sticks, cloves and vegetable stock and place the lid on and simmer for one and a half to two hours, stirring occasionally (okay that's a lie, I left it simmering and didn't stir it and it was fine).
Step 2 - Peel and core the quinces and cut them into a similar size to the beef. Place in the pot and simmer for 20 minutes or until the quince is tender but not mushy.
Note: this can also be done with lamb instead of beef and you can also use potatoes or sweet potatoes (just add a teaspoon of sugar if you're using potatoes).
Cut away the cores – no need to peel unless you want to. Serve them whole with some syrup and yoghurt, or slice them up for a cake or to add to your breakfast bowl.
Chuck. Chuck is one of the leaner types of beef, making it perfect for stews because it melts into delicious pieces as it cooks. A chuck roast has a large amount of connective tissue, which allows it to retain its moisture during the cooking process.
The most important key to making stew meat tender is being sure to cook it for a long time. If you want super tender beef, you'll need to cook it on a low heat in a Dutch oven on the stove or a slow cooker for at least a few hours.
While quinces can be eaten raw, they are not often eaten raw due to their tartness and tough skin. Its flavor is compared to a combination of crisp pears and tart apples. Cooked quinces have a sweeter, more delicate flavor and a softer texture than raw quinces.
This fruit is packed with vitamins, minerals as well as fibers, pectin and tannins. Quince is known by its many therapeutic effects that include antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anti-ulcerative, and anticancer actions.
Laurence further reveals that "adding wine or other alcohol brings out different flavors (those that are alcohol-soluble) that wouldn't otherwise be expressed in the dish. There are flavors in tomatoes that are alcohol-soluble, so adding red wine along with tomato paste also helps to enhance beef stew."
"Soups and stews really need to simmer for long periods to allow the ingredients to meld together. Taking that a step further, most soups and stews are better if you prepare them the day before serving. Allowing them to cool and then reheating them really helps bring out the flavors and textures."
Use cornstarch to thicken your stew towards the end of cooking, as cooking it for a long time can break down the starch and your stew will thin out again.
"The caramelized surface of the meat will lend rich flavor and color to the finished dish." If you are making a slow-cooked recipe that calls for ground beef, like chili, beef stew, or meat sauce, browning the meat beforehand makes a huge difference.
The ingredients for Easy Beef and Vegetable Stew can be modified to include green beans, peas, corn, and mushrooms as well. I often throw in a bag of baby carrots already peeled and prepared instead of peeling and chopping carrots.
The flavor was there, all right, but the beef was totally destroyed (along with my mom's dreams of stew, and my ego). Turns out you definitely can overcook beef stew.
But even that meat could become mushy if it spends too much time in a slow cooker. That wouldn't ruin the taste - in other words, it wouldn't be burnt. But the texture of it might be disappointing.
The idea is to cook the carrots and potatoes at the end of the simmering process, so they don't become mushy. Just make sure to keep an eye on the stew to see if you need to add additional broth or water to keep it from drying out.
The choice becomes easier when you realize that simple baking soda can be an ideal meat tenderizer that helps to bring out all the aromas and flavors in every sizzling beef stew or charburger.
The seeds, much like apples, contain trace amounts of cyanide, so fresh quince needs to be cored before use. The skin is edible when cooked, so peeling it is optional. Once cut, they begin to oxidize (turn brown) quickly, so submerge them in an acidic liquid like lemon water, or cook them immediately.
Baked whole: Quinces can be baked whole—skin, seeds, and all—in a moderate (350 degrees Fahrenheit) oven. After a minimum of 1.5 hours, they will be tender enough to slice with a spoon, and have a gently sweet flavor with a hint of tartness. Drizzle them with maple syrup and serve with whipped cream.
The raw flesh of a quince is creamy white, with a core inside just like an apple or pear. Cooking changes the color: Heat causes the formation of natural pigments called anthocyanins, which will turn the fruit anywhere from light pink to deep, dusky red.
Not many know that the hard, yellow fruits of the flowering quince, a popular garden shrub, make a fragrant ingredient. This edible ornamental brings an exotic, tart and aromatic flavour to seasonal co*cktails. Edible part: The fruit (seeds are toxic in sufficient quantities) and blossom (in moderation).
Introduction: My name is Trent Wehner, I am a talented, brainy, zealous, light, funny, gleaming, attractive person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
