Beef stew is best cooked in a slow cooker (a.k.a. crock pot).
Google "beef stew" for detailed recipes.
My mom used to make hash out of left over beef roast and potatoes. Cube and boil the potatoes. Sautee some onion and the beef in a skillet. Drain cooked potatoes and add with some beef broth. Salt and a good amount of black pepper. Cover and steam. The starch will release from the potatoes and make somewhat of a gravy. Finish by cooking uncovered until you get the consistency you like.
My favorite consistency: “Should tear a cat head biscuit clean in half when you drag it through the hash.” :)
Pretty much Irish Stew with beef instead of mutton and no carrots.
Also use russet/Idaho potatoes as they are high in starch and will thicken the gravy as it cooks.
Ping
**Freeper Kitchen Ping**
I get cravings all the time for the homemade “hash” I had in my growing-up years, so I always try to keep some in the freezer.
Whenever I make a roast or pot roast, I keep a portion of the beef for two other things - hash and a roast beef salad for sandwiches.
The roast beef salad is just chopped up leftover roast beef, chopped onion, chopped iceberg lettuce, some pepper, and enough Miracle Whip to wet it and hold it all together. Yum, I love it!
My hash recipe is similar to IAmConservative’s in post #6, except for a few things.
I cut up a bunch of leftover roast beef into small cubes and set aside. Then I cut up 1-2 peeled Idaho potatoes into small cubes and I chop an onion in medium dice.
For some reason, I just always make this in an electric skillet. I put a little oil in first, heat it, then add just the beef. It’s not being cooked, just browned a little bit to make some “browned bits” or “debris” for gravy.
Stir it and add the potatoes and onions, then let them also brown a little bit. Pour in enough beef broth to cover it all, plus lots of pepper, a little salt, and a couple of Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce. Put the lid on it, close the vent, and let it cook for 30 minutes or so until the potatoes are done. Check the liquid levels a couple of times, so it doesn’t get too thick or dry and stick to the skillet.
It pretty much makes its own gravy, thanks to the potatoes being cooked from raw. If it’s too thick, add water or more beef broth (or water and some beef bouillon). If you added too much broth and it’s still watery, make a slurry of flour and water or cornstarch and water, then stir that in and cook till thickened.
The funny thing about this hash was that my mother always served it over a slice of bread. Even as a kid, I thought that was “odd” because of the two starches - all those potatoes, plus bread.
However, there was something about the taste that I always remembered and I find myself putting it over bread when I fix it, too - and I’m a bread-hater.
Think I know what I’ll have for dinner tonight! There’s one more serving in the freezer and it has been jumping out at me ever since the cold front (well, a south TX “cold” front, anyway - 60s for highs!) was forecast to come in today.
Straight from Evansville, IN.
Hamburger Stew...has sage in it...
Stew without dumplings is like a day without sunshine.
I forwarded your question to my mother via email; she’s in her seventies and grew up in Iowa. Here’s her reply:
“What I recall as “hash” was when we would just sort of finely chop (or grind) leftover roast beef and then saute or fry some chopped onions, add chopped boiled potatoes, season with salt and pepper and call that “hash”. Some people then liked to have a soft-boiled egg with it.
“What we called beef stew would either be to cook the beef cubes for that purpose, but most often take leftover roast and gravy, purposely have cooked extra potatoes, carrots and onions, then mix it altogether, sometimes adding a bit of tomato paste and usual seasonings.”
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Happy Cooking to you, Lou.
Joya
My sis-in-law did a web search and found this:
Beef Hash
From Diana Rattray,
Make this hash with leftover roast beef or corned beef
* 3 cups cooked beef, coarsely chopped (use leftover pot roast, oven roast, corned beef, etc.)
* 2 large baking potatoes, peeled and diced
* 2 medium onions, chopped
* 1 green bell pepper, chopped
* 2 ribs celery, finely chopped
* 1 teaspoon dry mustard
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
* 1 1/2 cups beef broth*
*If you have a cup or so of leftover gravy, use gravy with water or broth to make 1 1/2 cups.
Combine all ingredients and pack into a well-greased shallow baking pan. Cover with foil and bake at 375° for 45 minutes. Uncover and brown under broiler. Serves 6.
http://southernfood.about.com/cs/beefrecipes/a/beef_hash1.htm
This just in, eight months later:
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Just now......... I looking for a recipe - when - my cookbook opened to ‘MEAT Leftover’. I had to almost giggle, I see something that you asked about several months ago, a hash recipe.... this on is titled:
CRISPY BROWNED HASH !!!
1 cup chopped cooked beef chuck
1 cup chopped cooked potatoes
1 onion, minced
1 Tbsp. minced parsley
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup mild
Combine all ingredients except milk. Place a little fat in a hot heavy skillet over medium heat. When fat is very hot, spread hash evenly in skillet. The pan should be hot enough to brown the bottom of the hash quickly, 10-15 min. Add milk an and mix. Cover and cook slowly until crisp, about 10 min. 2-3 servings.
Chopped cooked veal, lamb, ham, chicken or turkey may be used in place of beef when making hash.
Epicurious has never let me down especially since recipe reviews and suggestions are attached.