Jamaican beef stew recipe

Jamaican beef stew recipe - This delicious one pot meal consists of succulent pieces of meat seasoned and slow cooked with an abundance of herbs and spices.

I'm such a huge fan of one pot and slow cooker meals. Moreover, this Caribbean recipe certainly hits the right culinary buttons.

This Jamaica beef stew recipe is probably my favourite beef recipe of them all. Why? Because it's packed with flavour, made using one large dutch pot (dutch oven) and brings back some old school memories.

You can't really go wrong with a one pot Jamaican beef stew - the only biggest hurdle is the preparation and once you're over that hurdle, it's smooth sailing.

Beef stew or stew beef as the Jamaican linguistics would call it, is so hearty and rich. While the recipe to hand might remind you of the ultimate comfort food, in the Caribbean "stewing" is big business.

If you don't believe just check out my Jamaican brown stew chicken recipe. The aforementioned is just one excellent example of Jamaican stewed meat at it's finest. Whether it's summer or winter, rain or sunshine, this Jamaican beef stew is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser.

You may even want to check out my other Beef recipes - Jamaican Beef Curry (Curry Beef) and Plantain Pie. Both Recipes have a Caribbean flare to it.

It's also a great way to impress your guests or family with a Jamaican cuisine that's not predictable i.e  Jerk chicken. In other words, it's a unexpected Jamaican dish, but one that your loved ones will adore. I know my family never get tired of this recipe and I don't get tired of making it either.

How to prepare a tasty Jamaican beef stew recipe?

Speaking of making the dish, my choice of pot was something that's quite common amongst English speaking islands - a dutch pot or dutchie as some call it. If you don't own one that's fine because a casserole dish or dutch oven will work too.

The key is to use a pot that's quite deep so it accommodates the large quantity of solid foods. You don't need the most premium cuts of beef to recreate this Jamaican style beef stew.

Just some good old stewing steak that's precut into small cubes should suffice (that's what I usually use).

What is Jamaican beef stew eaten with?

Typically you'll find Jamaicans have a fondness for using Irish potatoes (white potatoes). I don't really promote the consumption of white potatoes simply because they cause an instant spike in glucose compared to white or orange sweet potatoes. From a nutritional standpoint sweet potatoes would be a more viable choice to use.

You can also pair beef stew with boiled dumpling boiled dumpling  perhaps with some brown rice or even some mashed yam 

How long does the beef stew take to cook?

The beef although cut into small chunks, still takes awhile to cook. We are talking a total of 1 hr and 20 minutes from start to scratch. With that being said, don't let this discourage you from making the recipe.

If you're impatient or simply want the recipe to cook while attending to other chores, use a slow cooker instead or pressure cook the meat to fast track cooking .

Alternatively, the dutch pot, stove method works which is what the recipe calls for, works just fine.

 What seasoning is needed to make the stew?

Beef Stew Seasoning is required for flavour,

I have listed all the ingredients needed to make the dry rub for the beef.

Don't be scared to use a lot of seasoning especially for this recipe because the liquid will need to be absorbed during the first stages of cooking and also with the additional use of water. The generous amount of seasoning really balances it's self out in the recipe.

Is it really necessary to use a coffee grinder for the seasoning?

No, it's not crucial but highly recommended. There's a huge difference in flavour and taste when seasoning is milled in a grinder versus just mixing them together. Alternatively, you can also use a mortar and pestle if you own one.

If you don't have none of the aforementioned, don't worry as it you can still mix all of the ingredients together in order to create the beef seasoning.

You will need my homemade browning sauce  for the Jamaican beef stew to enhance the darkening of the meat.

Notes and tips

• Feel free to freeze down any leftovers for up to 3 months.
• To give this dish a larger quantity of meat I recommend using 2lbs of beef which I have updated in the recipe card.
• To make this recipe in the crockpot follow the instructions to step 11. Use 2 cups of hot water, set your crockpot on high, add the sweet potato 45 minutes before the finishing time and you may need to mix a slurry of 2 tbsp of starch with 2 tbsp of water to thicken the stew.
• For the stovetop - you may want to add the softer ingredients like the sweet potatoes half way through the cooking time instead of when the meat is about to be simmered.
• Use dried ingredients like dried thyme (1-2 tsp) and pimento if you can't obtain the whole version.
• Always do a taste test prior to serving and adjust seasoning accordingly.
• You may not need 2 ½ cups of water for the stovetop version but have this amount on standby start with 1 ½ cups and add ⅓ cup of water if needed
• Always use hot water to replenish your pot to keep the temperature levels consistent.

 Other recipes to try

Cuban Picadillo 

Brown Stew Turkey Neck

Jamaican Curry Goat

Plantain Lasagna

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Jamaican beef stew recipe

Jamaican beef stew - Delicious Caribbean one pot Jamaican dinner

4.94 from 15 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Entree

Cuisine: Jamaican

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 347kcal

Author: Charla

Ingredients

• ▢ 1-2 lb of beef cleaned and rinsed with lime juice

For the beef seasoning

• ▢ 1 tbsp of paprika
• ▢ 1 tbsp of black pepper
• ▢ 1 tsp of coriander
• ▢ 1 tsp of garlic powder/granules
• ▢ 1 tsp of onion powder
• ▢ 1 tsp of himalayan pink salt
• ▢ ½ tsp red chilli flakes
• ▢ 3 tsp of homemade browning sauce see recipe post
• ▢ 1 large sweet potato peeled and chopped
• ▢ 2 large carrots sliced
• ▢ 1 red or green bell sliced
• ▢ 1 large tomato chopped
• ▢ 1 onion chopped
• ▢ 3 scallion chopped
• ▢ 3 garlic cloves chopped
• ▢ 3 pimento berries or ¼ tsp of ground allspice
• ▢ 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• ▢ 1 tbsp of tomato puree
• ▢ 1 scotch bonnet
• ▢ 2 ½ cups of  hot water
• ▢ 2 tbsp of coconut oil

Instructions

• If you have a spice/coffee grinder (high recommended) add all of the ingredients for the beef seasoning to the grinder and mill them into a fine consistency. skip this step if it doesn't apply.
• Place the washed beef in a large bowl then proceed to add all of the ingredients which form the beef seasoning to the bowl.
• Add the browning sauce, chopped onions, garlic, scallion and tomato (not puree).
• Use your hands or a spoon to work the seasoning into the the beef to create a wet rub. The use of hands is so much better to really work those herbs and spices into the meat.
• Set the bowl aside to marinate for at least an hour or overnight.
• Melt the coconut oil on medium heat in a dutch pot or casserole dish. Then add the marinated beef to the pot and begin to sear. Stir the beef so all the beef pieces are evenly browned. This will take a few minutes to complete.
• As the beef begins to brown add the thyme and reduce the heat to low and put the lid on the pot.
• Let the beef continue to brown and cook through for 10-15 minutes. During the given time you may notice an increase in liquid.
• Remove the lid, increase the heat to high so the liquid absorbs and decreases. This is done to further seal in the flavour. Keep a watchful eye and stir at times if needed to avoid the beef charring.
• Once the liquid has evaporated (or almost) add the carrots, bell peppers, pimento (all spice) sweet potatoes and scotch  bonnet - stir and combine.
• Finally pour in 1 ½ cup of  hot water and tomato puree then give another stir before bringing to the boil then reduce the heat to low with the lid on.
• Leave the stew to cook for up to an hour check frequently to ensure the meat liquid levels are constant. Add a ⅓ cup of water at a time if more is required
• Once cooked serve accordingly.

Notes

• Feel free to freeze down any leftovers for up to 3 months.
• To give this dish a larger quantity of meat I recommend using 2lbs of beef which I have updated in the recipe card.
• To make this recipe in the crockpot follow the instructions to step 11. Use 2 cups of hot water, set your crockpot on high, add the sweet potato 45 minutes before the finishing time and you may need to mix a slurry of 2 tbsp of starch with 2 tbsp of water to thicken the stew.
• For the stovetop - you may want to add the softer ingredients like the sweet potatoes half way through the cooking time instead of when the meat is about to be simmered.
• Use dried ingredients like dried thyme (1-2 tsp) and pimento if you can't obtain the whole version.
• Always do a taste test prior to serving and adjust seasoning accordingly.
• You may not need 2 ½ cups of water for the stovetop version but have this amount on standby start with 1 ½ cups and add ⅓ cup of water if needed
• Always use hot water to replenish your pot to keep the temperature levels consistent.

Nutrition

Calories: 347kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 22g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 27864mg | Potassium: 949mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 11178IU | Vitamin C: 40mg | Calcium: 129mg | Iron: 4mg

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