Beef stew also known as beef potjie/ beef potjiekos is one of the typical Namibian dishes. It’s normally prepared in a large cast-iron three-legged pot over an open wood fire. This recipe however was made exclusively on the stovetop.
Making beef stew over the open fire usually takes 3 to 4 hours, in comparison to an electric stove but it’s well worth the effort.
The Namibian beef stew is made with big chunks of beef, that contain fat and bones, vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, butternut, sweet potatoes, corn, just depending on what you have home. Sometimes we also add intestines and tripe, since this gives the beef stew an amazing kick.
This beef stew is made with simple ingredients, leaves lots of room for small changes with still amazing results and tastes so good. It tastes great with pap, fat cakes (fried dough),pasta or over rice.
What you’ll need to make beef potjiekos recipe
1 kg (2.2 lbs) beef chucks/shanks with bone-in
4 tablespoons tomato paste
2 large onions
2 garlic cloves
300 g (10.6 oz) carrots
1 liter (about 4 cups) water, hot
chili flakes, salt and pepper to taste
about 3 tablespoons to brown the meat
How to make Namibian beef stew
Pat dry the meat with paper towels and cut it into bite-sized pieces.
Next peel and cut the onions and garlic cloves into smaller pieces.
In a large pot heat the oil at medium – high and brown the meat chunks. Don’t overcrowd the pot, otherwise the meat won’t brown.
Add onions and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring continuously.
In the meanwhile peel and cut the carrots into pieces.
Add the carrots and then the tomato paste and stir well. Cook for another minute.
Add about half of water and stir to combine.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium – low. Cover and simmer for 60 minutes. Keep stirring and adding water in between, so that the bottom of the pot doesn’t burn.
Season with chili flakes, salt and pepper and add the remaining water.
Let simmer for another 25 minutes or until the meat is tender and the sauce is nicely thick. If you feel like the meat is not yet tender, then just add more liquid and let simmer a bit longer. Enjoy!
This Namibian style beef stew aka. Potjiekos is hearty, rich and packed with flavor. Made with a handful of simple ingredients on the stovetop in less than 2 hours. It tastes great withpap,fat cakes (fried dough),pasta or overrice.
Prep Time15 minutesmins
Cook Time1 hourhr30 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr45 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: African, Namibian, Southern African
Keyword: African beef stew, beef potjie, beef potjiekos, beef stew, beef stew with carrots, dinner, how to, keto, Low carb, potjiekos, stew
Servings: 4Servings
Author: Ester | esterkocht.com
Ingredients
1kg (2.2 lbs)beef chucksor shanks with bone-in
4tablespoonstomato paste
2large onions
2garlic cloves
300g (10.6 oz)carrots
1liter (4 cups )waterhot
chili flakes, salt and pepperto taste
3tablespoonssunflower oil to brown the meat
Instructions
Pat the meat dry with kitchen papers/ paper towels and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Next peel and cut the onions and garlic cloves into smaller pieces.
In a large pot heat the oil at medium – high and brown the meat chunks. Don’t crowd the pot, otherwise the meat won’t brown. (SEE NOTES) Add onions and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring continuously. In the meanwhile peel and cut the carrots into pieces. Add the carrots and then the tomato paste and stir well. Cook for another minute.
Add half of water and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to medium – low. Cover and simmer for 60 minutes. Keep stirring and adding water in between, so that the bottom of the pot doesn’t burn.
Season with chili flakes, salt and pepper and add the remaining water. Let simmer for another 25 minutes or until the meat is tender and the sauce is nicely thick. (SEE NOTES)
Notes
If you’re using more than 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of meat or a smaller pot, then you should divide the meat into half, otherwise you will crowd the pot and the meat will not brown.
If you feel like the meat is not yet tender, then just add more liquid and let simmer a bit longer.
Did you make this Namibian style beef stew recipe? I’d love to hear from you! Simply write a review and add rating to it
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.
To make the best tasting stew use these ingredients: beef, tomatoes, onion, leek (or green onions), parsley, celery leaves, basil, garlic, ginger, white pepper, stock cubes, oil, and salt. Now if you love heat, feel free to equally add in some habanero or scotch bonnet pepper.
I almost always add some beef bouillon crystals to my stew, it helps oomph (yes, a technical term) the beefiness of the stock. Sometimes also use a few shots of worcestershire sauce or soy sauce - both will also add some oomph to the flavor.
Add spices such as turmeric, coriander and cumin at the early stage of cooking, when you are frying onions and garlic, to enhance the taste of the beef stew. Fresh herbs like coriander and bay leaves also contribute a distinct flavour without making the dish too spicy for the younger members of the family.
But the liquid itself should not be thick in the same way that gravy is thick. So skip the roux, and don't bother dusting the meat with flour or cornstarch before browning, either, as some recipes will suggest. That will just interfere with getting a good sear on the meat, and gum up the stew with unneeded starch.
Add the beef, beef broth and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a slow simmer. Cover and cook, skimming broth from time to time, until the beef is tender, about 1½ hours.
It is air-cured meat immersed in vinegar and spices. Various types of meat are used to make biltong but it is most commonly made from beef because of its widespread availability and lower costs.
The three main thickening agents for gravies are flour, cornflour and arrowroot. The first two are normally used in savoury dishes while arrowroot tends to be used in sweet dishes – that said, arrowroot will work in a savoury dish as it has no flavour.
Even the best home cook has stared down into a simmering pot of stew and realized it looked more like soup! Sure, a bowl of soup can be comforting, but a true stew in all its glory should be rich and thick in consistency.
The most common beef used for stew is chuck steak, also known as gravy beef or braising steak. Beef chuck comes from the forequarter of the animal consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade and upper arm. It is easy to find and it's affordable, making it a great choice for your stew.
If you have homemade beef stock, use it! However, most commercially produced beef broths taste rather fake; chicken broths are much richer and complex. Bay leaves and thyme – Aromatics for more flavor! Carrots, potatoes and peas are the staple of a traditional stew.
Not browning the beef enough would be the first possible problem. That adds a lot of flavour to the finished stew. You can toss the beef in seasoned flour before browning it which will also help thicken the stew. Not adding enough seasoning would be the second potential issue.
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."
Simmering the stew with the lid ON allows the connective tissues in the beef to break down. Removing the lid then continuing to simmer with it OFF allows the beef to finish becoming tender and thicken the broth.
This gives collagens in the tough muscle tissue time to melt and make the meat tender. Try tasting a bite after an hour, two hours, and three hours — you'll see how the meat goes from chewy to pretty good to fall-apart tender.
Introduction: My name is Francesca Jacobs Ret, I am a innocent, super, beautiful, charming, lucky, gentle, clever 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.
