BOTTOM ROUND ROAST WITH ONION GRAVY

 ~ allrecipes

6 onions, sliced
4 lb. bottom round roast
salt and pepper, to taste
1 bay leaf
1 T. vinegar
1 T. flour
1 c. water

Place sliced onions in Dutch oven or stock pot. Season roast with salt and pepper, then place on top of onions. Add vinegar and bay leaf to pot. Turn heat to high until simmering, then reduce to low, cover, and simmer 3-4 hours. Do not remove lid while cooking.  

Once roast has finished cooking, transfer from pot to serving dish. Mix flour into water to make a roux, then stir into drippings remaining in pot. Simmer over medium heat until thickened, stirring frequently. Slice roast and serve with gravy. 

Notes: Maybe I have extra juicy onions or something, but adding the cup of water would make my gravy way too thin and take forever to thicken back up. Instead, I just pull some liquid from the pot to make the roux.  

SIRLOIN STRIPS OVER RICE

~ Taste of Home

1 1/2 lb. top sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 t. olive oil, divided
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
14 1/2 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 c. beef broth
1/3 c. dry red wine or additional beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 t. basil
1/2 t. thyme
3 c. hot cooked brown rice

Sprinkle beef strips with salt and pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, brown beef with one teaspoon of the oil. Remove from stove and keep warm.

In the same skillet, saute onions in remaining teaspoon of oil until tender. Add garlic and cook for one minute. Stir in tomatoes, broth, wine, bay leaf, basil, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for ten minutes.

Return browned beef strips to pan and cook 2-4 minutes or until tender. Discard bay leaf. Serve over rice.

Notes: I've made this with thin cut sirloin tip steak, which I cut into narrow strips. It's good both with and without rice. 

DAIRY-FREE BEEF STROGANOFF

~ K & R Adventures

1 1/2 lb. sirloin steak tips or lean stew beef, cut into small pieces
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
2 T. olive oil
1/2 white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
10 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 1/4 c. beef broth
1/4 c. coconut aminos or low sodium soy sauce
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1/2 c. canned coconut milk or coconut cream
3 T. flour
2 T. water
egg noodles
chopped parsley, to taste

Toss beef, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper until coated.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add coated beef to hot oil and stir until browned on each side. Remove beef from pan and set aside.

Add onions and garlic to pan and saute 3-4 minutes or until translucent. Add mushrooms and saute another two minutes. Add coconut aminos or soy sauce and vinegar to deglaze pan, then stir in browned beef and beef broth.

Reduce heat to low, then cover and simmer for about three hours, stirring occasionally. Once beef starts to become tender, stir in coconut milk or cream.

Whisk flour and water together in separate bowl until smooth, then stir into beef mixture. Simmer uncovered about 30 minutes or until sauce has thickened and beef is fork tender.

While beef is simmering, cook egg noodles according to package directions.

Serve beef over noodles and garnish with chopped parsley.

Notes: I know egg noodles are the classic stroganoff pasta, but any shaped noodle will do.

BEEF BARLEY SOUP

~ Taste of Home

3 meaty beef soup bones (beef shanks or short ribs)
10 c. water
1 medium onion, chopped
5 t. beef bouillon granules
1 T. cider vinegar
1/2 - 1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 c. chopped carrots
1 1/2 c. chopped celery
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 c. medium pearl barley
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/4 - 1/2 t. dill

In a Dutch oven or soup pot, place bones, water, onion, bouillon, vinegar, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Slowly bring to a boil and skim foam with a slotted spoon. Reduce heat; over and simmer 3-4 hours.

Discard bay leaves. Set bones aside until cool enough to handle, then remove meat from bones and dice. Skim fat from broth surface. Add meat, carrots, celery, potatoes, barley, thyme, and dill. Cover and cook 1 hour or until vegetables and barley are tender.

Makes about two quarts.

Notes: I skip the bouillon, replacing 5 cups of beef broth for 5 cups of water instead. Our meat gets shredded instead of diced.

RESTAURANT-STYLE PRIME RIB ROAST

~ allrecipes

14 lb. roast-ready prime rib roast (ribs cut off and tied to roast)
3/4 c. flour
2 t. pepper
2 t. salt
2 t. paprika
1 t. onion powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. celery seed

Remove meat from fridge and allow to come to room temperature, about three hours for a 14 lb. roast.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a roasting pan with foil. Place roast on roasting pan and blot with paper towels. In a small bowl, mix flour, pepper, salt, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and celery seed. Coat the meat with the flour mixture.

Roast until it's as cooked as you'd like it to be, about 20 minutes per pound for medium-rare. Internal temperature should be 120 degrees for medium-rare, 130 degrees for medium, and 140 degrees for well-done.

Remove from oven and cover with foil. Rest in a warm place for 30-60 minutes before slicing.

Notes: We've made this with a much smaller amount of meat, didn't cut the ribs and tie them to the meat, didn't allow it to come to room temperature, and cooked it in a 3-qt. cast iron Dutch oven, but it still turned out awesome. You can click the allrecipes link at the top of this post and read the comment to find out how long people have cooked various sizes of meat. 

BEEF STEW

~ Amanda's Plate

2 T. olive oil
2 T. butter
1 1/2 lb. stew meat
2 c. chopped onions
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 c. vegetable or beef stock
2 T. tomato paste
1 t. sugar
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. kosher salt
1 t. pepper
1/2 t. fresh thyme
1/2 t. cayenne
1 1/2 c. chopped carrots
1 1/2 c. chopped celery
2 c. chopped turnips

Heat olive oil and butter in stew pot over medium-high heat. Once butter is melted, add meat and sear on each side, then remove meat from pot.

Add onion and garlic to pot and cook until onions are translucent. Stir in stock, tomato paste, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, thyme, and cayenne. Return meat to pot and turn heat to low. Cover and simmer for one hour.

Add carrots, celery, and turnips to pot. Simmer for 30 minutes or until sauce has thickened a bit and vegetables have cooked through.

Notes: This is the first stew I ever made and it's great. The only changes I make are to sub potatoes for the turnips because I always have them on hand and only use 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne. The original recipe, which is linked at the top of this post, suggests serving the stew over mashed potatoes. I don't want to double up on potatoes, so I serve it over rice or with buttermilk biscuits with chives and black pepper or cracked wheat and honey bread. 

CROCKPOT ROAST WITH PEPPERS & TOMATILLOS

~ Sammy Lackner 

roast
Anaheim peppers
tomatillos
garlic
onion
salt
pepper
broth

Chop all the produce, then place in a crockpot with roast. Season with salt and pepper. Pour some broth over the top. Cook on low for four hours or until cooked completely. Shred beef before serving.

Notes: Use whatever amounts of all the ingredients that strike your fancy and whatever type of broth you have handy. We serve this over rice, but you could toss it all in a tortilla.

SLOW COOKER ASIAN SHORT RIBS

~ Real Simple

8 (about 4 lb.) beef short ribs or 4 (about 3 lb.) flank ribs
4 medium carrots, peeled and halved crosswise
1 small green cabbage, quartered
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/3 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T. fresh ginger, grated
1/2 t. red pepper flakes
2 T. cornstarch
1 T. sesame oil
4 green onions, sliced

Place ribs in the bottom of crockpot, lay the carrots on top, then place cabbage quarters over carrots.  Combine soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and red pepper in a separate bowl, then pour over meat and vegetables.  Cover and cook on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 7-8 hours, until the meat is tender and easily pulls away from the bone.

Transfer the cabbage, short ribs, and carrots to plates.  With a large spoon or ladle, skim the fat from the cooking liquied and discard. 

If the crockpot is on the low setting, then turn it to high.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water until smooth.  Whisk into the cooking liquid and cook until thickened, 2-3 minutes.  Stir in the sesame oil.  Spoon the sauce over the short ribs and vegetables, the sprinkle with green onions.

Notes: We like to eat this over rice.

STEAK SALAD

~ Bethany Weathersby

SALAD
lettuce and/or spinach
grilled steak, cut into bite sized pieces
feta, crumbled
red bell pepper, chopped
walnuts, almonds, or other nut, chopped

DRESSING
orange and/or lemon juice
olive oil
salt & pepper

Use the greens as a base, season the meat however you like before grilling, then sprinkle as much of the toppings as you want over the top.  Use whatever amount of the dressing ingredients suits your tastes.

Notes: We've made this with both seasoned pork and beef steaks and it's delicious, with or without the dressing.