[Over]Night Cooking

[browngirl]

I really love cooking things overnight in the oven. I mean, a crockpot does well at the same task, but in the oven one can cook multiple dishes. Friday night I made oatmeal and hominy porridge (and finally got the ratios right! Oats: 2/3 cup pinhead oats, 1 tsp added oat bran, and 3 cups water. Hominy: 1/2 cup hominy, 1 tsp oat bran, and 2 &1/4 cups water) and baked apples (which came out ruddy brown and custard-textured). Last night I made Apple Family Compote (quince, pear, apple and a strip of lemon peel -- I should have added rosehips) and Overnight Beef Stew:

Overnight Beef Stew

1 ovensafe 2 quart pot with tight fitting lid
1 thick slice beef shank, about 1&1/2 pounds
3 onions
2 carrots
splash of oil
2-4 mushrooms
1-2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp anchovy paste (optional)
1-2 cloves garlic (or more if you like)
2 tsp tomato paste
salt, pepper, and whatever spices you like for beef (I used 1 tsp freshly ground pepper and 2 tsp 'Everyday Seasoning', which has onion, hot pepper, orange peel, and coriander in it, and a sprig of fresh thyme)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup breadcrumbs

Chop up the onions and carrots, and saute them with the salt until the edges are starting to brown. Add the mushrooms, anchovy and tomato pastes, pepper and other spices, and saute about 5 minutes more. Scrape into the saucepan, then deglaze with the water and add that to the saucepan. Add the beef and pour the soy sauce over, lid up and put in the oven at 215 degrees overnight. (about 10 hours.) Use breadcrumbs to thicken the sauce if you like. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

Yes, I didn't brown the beef-- by sitting atop the vegetation and slowly sinking into it, it ends up browning from the oven's heat, very slowly over the long cooking.

Comments

[thnidu.livejournal.com]

So you stew the meat as one big piece? (Ista, get out of my face!) I'm totally used to cutting stew beef into cubes before cooking; in fact, when SON & I were shopping Friday night we picked up a kosher brisket for that purpose. I'm to cube it sometime soon.

And as it happens we also bought large crockpot (6qt) by his request.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Brisket works really, really well, slow-cooked in one piece. Brown on the outside first, then slow-cook forever.

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

It depends on the cut of beef. Beef shank is already sliced across the grain and doesn't need any more cutting up; brisket is good cubed or whole; I like chuck better in chunks.