Mom's Beef Stew

1/2 cup of cooked bacon

1lb. Stew Meat

1 Cup of Flour

1 TBS onion powder

1 Large onion, white

2 Cups of water

2 Cans of beef stock

1/2 Cup of Ketchup

3 Large carrots

3 Medium Potatoes

1 Cup of Frozen Peas

3 Stalks of celery 

In a frying pan, cook bacon. Combine flour, onion powder, salt and pepper. Roll tenderized stew meat in flour mixture. Cover well. (I use a plastic bag). Brown meat in bacon fat. Add oil if it gets too dry. Chop onion and add to meat. Add water, beef stock and ketchup to crock pot or dutch oven. Add meat and beacon mixture and combine well. Salt and Pepper to taste. Add diced celery. Allow to simmer in pot for about 1hr. Then add carrots and potatoes, allow to simmer for another 2hrs. 

If at the end of cooking, the stew is too watery, add a tbsp of flour to thicken. Allow to simmer another 30mins, to cook the added flour down. 

If cooking in a crock pot, allow at least 5hrs, to cook. 

Light beef Stew

This recipe is taken from a common French Stew, Boeuf Bourguignon. It's very light, and easy to make and it's very tasty and my take on it. French cooking is actually very easy if you stick to the rustic country dishes.It's not the prettiest dish, but it is tasty.

You can use large cut of beef or beef stew meat. 

1lb beef or more depending on how many people you are serving
5 sprigs of thyme
3 sprigs of rosemary
6 gloves of garlic
1/2 yellow onion (slice)
1/2 red bell pepper (slice)
1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms
1 cup of baby carrots
3/4 cup of red wine
1/2 cup of water
flour
salt and pepper to taste

Keep meat in large pieces and dredge in flour and brown in olive oil, like common stews. 
In the bottom of crock pot or Dutch oven, lay down the sprigs, rosemary, and garlic. Lay meat over the top. Lay sliced onion and peppers over the top of the meat. Pour wine and water over the top. Cook on high in Crock pot all day or at least 5hrs. In Dutch oven heat over to 275 degrees for 3hrs. The last hour of crock pot add the carrots and mushrooms. The last 1/2hr of dutch oven add carrots and mushrooms. 

If preparing in a crock pot in the morning, cook on low heat for all day. 

When you serve this dish, don't thicken the juices. This is a thin stew. Serve with bread for dipping in juices. The meat should fall apart with a fork.