Jovina cooks Italian: Beef Carbonade

Carbonade

A classic northern Italian stew.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds (800 g) lean beef, cubed
• 2 medium-sized onions
• Bay leaf
• 2 cloves garlic
• Freshly ground nutmeg
• Pinch of powdered cinnamon
• Pinch of sugar
• Flour (omit if gluten intolerant or on low carb diet)
• Beef broth
• 2 cups full-bodied dry red wine
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• Salt and pepper
• Directions

Flour the beef, or perhaps not, and brown the pieces in the butter, taking them out of the pot with a slotted spoon and setting them aside when brown.

Slice the onions into rounds and brown them in the same pot, add a ladle of broth and simmer until the broth has evaporated. Add the meat, the spices, the bay leaf, salt and add a pinch of sugar. Then add the wine, bring it all to a boil, reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cook, covered, adding more broth as necessary to the meat submerged.

After about 2 hours or when the meat is tender, add a grinding of pepper and serve.

Yield: 4 servings