Description
Hearty vegetable beef soup featuring fall-apart tender stewing beef, fragrant herbs, and a rich broth enhanced with red wine or stout. Perfect for a comforting meal, this soup combines vegetables, tender beef, and optional buttery mushrooms for extra flavor. It simmers gently for a robust taste and is great served with crusty bread.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1.5 tbsp olive oil, separated
- 500g/1 lb stewing beef, cut into 1.75cm / 2/3" cubes
- 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced (about 1 tbsp)
- 2 celery stalks, cut into 0.8 cm / 1/3" slices
- 3 carrots, cut into 0.5 cm / 1/5" thick slices (halve larger ones)
- 4 tbsp flour
- 2 1/2 cups (625ml) beef broth/stock, low sodium
- 1 1/2 cups (375ml) dry red wine, Guinness beer or stout
- 1.5 cups (375ml) water
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 potatoes, cut into 1.5cm / 2/3" cubes
Optional Buttery Mushrooms
- 1 tbsp (15g) butter or oil
- 200g/6oz small mushrooms, quartered or halved
Instructions
- Heat oil and brown beef: Heat 1 tbsp olive oil until very hot in a large, heavy-based pot over high heat. Pat the beef dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Brown the beef aggressively in 2 to 3 batches, adding more oil if needed, then remove browned beef into a bowl.
- Sauté aromatics and vegetables: If the pot looks dry, add a touch more oil. Add garlic and chopped onion, cooking for 2 minutes until fragrant. Add carrot and celery and cook for another 2 minutes until onion is translucent.
- Make roux and add liquids: Stir in flour to coat the vegetables. Slowly pour in beef broth while stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Then add red wine (or Guinness/stout), water, tomato paste, bay leaves, and dried thyme; stir well to combine.
- Simmer beef and broth: Return the browned beef to the pot. Cover and adjust heat to medium-low so the soup bubbles gently. Simmer for 1 hour 15 minutes or until beef is tender and falls apart.
- Add potatoes, peas, and mushrooms: Add cubed potatoes and frozen peas to the soup, simmer uncovered for 20 minutes until potatoes are cooked. In the last 5 minutes, add the cooked buttery mushrooms if using.
- Prepare optional buttery mushrooms: In a separate skillet, melt butter or heat oil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until browned. Season with salt and pepper then add them into the soup during the final step.
- Season and serve: Adjust salt and pepper to taste, with plenty of pepper if preferred. Ladle soup into bowls, sprinkle with fresh parsley if desired, and serve with crusty bread such as cheesy garlic bread or Irish soda bread.
Notes
- Beef: Use stewing or braising beef cuts like chuck or boneless short rib that are marbled with fat for best tenderness and flavor.
- Red Wine/Guinness/Stout: Provides richness and depth. If non-alcoholic, substitute with a can of crushed tomatoes and Worcestershire sauce for flavor.
- Storage: Soup tastes better the next day and keeps well in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. It also freezes perfectly.
- Season generously with black pepper to enhance the robust flavors of the soup.
- For a thicker soup, brown the flour carefully with vegetables before adding liquids to avoid lumps.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 350 kcal
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 400 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 25 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
