An easy to make traditional hearty beef stew from the Scottish highlands.
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: about 2 hours
Serves up to 10 people
Gluten/Soy/Nuts/Dairy free
This is not your mom's stew...unless you are a Scot!
This is hearty and has rutabaga, carrots, potatoes and herbs. It has a sweet flavor profile which makes it different than other stews I have made.
This wonderful stew is perfect for those cold nights when one craves comfort food. It is pretty easy to make and like most of my recipes it requires minimal culinary skills, so anyone can make it.
What is the flavor profile?
Savory with sweet notes from the currant jelly.
What ingredients will I need to make this?
Beef chuck, gluten free flour, vegetable oil, beef stock, thyme, bay leaves, red currant jelly, dry red wine, garlic, carrots, sweet onion, rutabaga, yellow potatoes, salt, pepper, celery, and parsley.
What else will I need?
Measuring cups and spoons, a knife, a cutting board, a large resealable plastic bag, and a large cast iron pot.
Some Useful Information
What are rutabaga?
Rutabaga or swede is a root vegetable, a form of Brassica napus (which also includes rapeseed). Other names include Swedish turnip, neep (Scottish) and turnip (Canadian English, Irish English and Manx English) – however, elsewhere the name "turnip" usually refers to the related white turnip.
The species Brassica napus originated as a hybrid between the cabbage (Brassica oleracea) and the turnip (Brassica rapa). Rutabaga roots are eaten as human food in a variety of ways, and the leaves can be eaten as a leaf vegetable. The roots and tops are also used for livestock, either fed directly in the winter or foraged in the field during the other seasons. Scotland, Northern England, West England, the Isle of Man and Ireland had a tradition of carving the roots into lanterns at Halloween.
Uses of Rutabaga in...
Finland
Finns eat and cook rutabaga in a variety of ways. Rutabaga is the major ingredient in the popular Christmas dish lanttulaatikko (rutabaga casserole), one of the three main casseroles served during the Finnish Christmas, alongside the potato, and the carrot casseroles.
Uncooked and thinly julienned rutabaga is often served as a side dish salad in school and work place lunches. Raisins or canned pineapple in light syrup are often added to the rutabaga salad. Sometimes, thinly sliced raw carrots are mixed in with rutabaga.
Finns use rutabaga in most dishes that call for a root vegetable. Most of the Finnish soup bases consist of potatoes, carrots and rutabagas. The stock is often flavoured with peppercorns and bay leaves, and sometimes milk or herbs, such as dill, are added. Salmon or beef is added to this soup base. Occasionally the meat is replaced with vegan meat alternative, such as Nyhtökaura pulled oats or broad bean (fava bean) protein chunks.
Finnish cuisine also roasts, bakes, boils and grills rutabagas. Oven baked root vegetables is yet another home cooking classic in Finland: rutabaga, carrots, beetroots and potatoes are roasted in the oven with salt and oil. Karjalanpaisti (Karelian hot pot) is a popular slow cooking stew with root vegetables and meat cooked over a long time in a Dutch oven.
The Finnish supermarkets sell alternative potato chips, made out of root vegetables, such as rutabagas, beetroots and carrots.
Rutabagas are also used as an ingredient in Lanttukukko (Rutabaga-kukko, a traditional Savonian and Karelian dish).
Scandinavia
In Sweden and Norway, rutabaga is cooked with potato and sometimes carrot, and mashed with butter and either stock or, occasionally, milk or cream, to create a puree called rotmos (Swedish, literally: root mash) or kålrabistappe (Norwegian). Onion is occasionally added. In Norway, kålrabistappe is an obligatory accompaniment to many festive dishes, including smalahove, pinnekjøtt, raspeball and salted herring. In Sweden, rotmos is often eaten together with cured and boiled ham hock, accompanied by mustard. This classic Swedish dish is called fläsklägg med rotmos. In Wales, a similar mash produced using just potato and rutabaga is known as ponsh maip in the North-East of the country, as mwtrin on the Llyn peninsula and as stwnsh rwden in other parts.
Western Europe And the United Kingdom
In the Netherlands, rutabaga is traditionally served boiled and mashed. Adding mashed potatoes (and, in some recipes, similarly mashed vegetables or fruits) makes stamppot (English: mash pot), a dish often served alongside smoked sausage.
In Scotland, separately boiled and mashed, rutabagas (neeps) and potatoes are served as "neeps and tatties" ("tatties" being the Scots word for potatoes), in a traditional Burns supper, together with the main course of haggis (the Scottish national dish). Neeps mashed with carrots or potatoes is called clapshot. Roughly equal quantities of neeps and tatties are boiled together in salted water and mashed with butter. Seasoning can be augmented with black pepper. Onions are never used. Regionally, neeps are a common ingredient in soups and stews.
In England, swede is boiled together with carrots and served either mashed or pureed with butter and ground pepper. The flavored cooking water is often retained for soup, or as an addition to gravy. Swede is an essential vegetable component of the traditional Welsh lamb broth called cawl and Irish stew as eaten in England. Swede is also a component of the popular condiment Branston Pickle. The swede is also one of the four traditional ingredients of the pasty originating in Cornwall.
Other countries
In Canada they are considered winter vegetables, as along with similar vegetables they are able to be kept in a cold area or cellar for several months. They are primarily used as a side dish. They are also used as filler in foods such as mincemeat and Christmas cake.
In the US, rutabagas are not widely eaten, but may be found as part of stews or casseroles, served mashed with carrots, or baked in a pasty. They are frequently found in the New England boiled dinner.
In Australia, swedes are used as a flavor enhancer in casseroles, stews and soups.
What is RedCurrant or Red Currant?
The redcurrant or red currant (Ribes rubrum) is a member of the genus Ribes in the gooseberry family. It is native across Europe. The species is widely cultivated and has escaped into the wild in many regions.
INGREDIENTS
3 pounds of Beef Chuck (cubbed) or stew meat.
4 tablespoons of gluten free flour
5 tablespoons of vegetable oil
6 cups of gluten free beef stock
4 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons of red currant jelly
2 cups of dry red wine
4 cloves of garlic (crushed)
4 carrots (chopped)
1 large sweet onion (chopped)
1 large rutabaga (peeled and cubed)
3 yellow potatoes (peeled and cubed)
1 tablespoon of salt
1 tablespoon of pepper
4 celery stalks (chopped)
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh Parsley for garnish
Method
Peel and cut all ingredients. In a big resealable plastic bag place the flour, meat and 1 tablespoon of salt and pepper each. Shake well until all the meat is coated with the flour.
In a large cast iron pot, on medium heat, add 5 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Brown meat in batches (4 minutes each batch). Remove meat and set aside. Add onions, celery, carrots, potatoes and rutabaga to the pot and cook for 7 minutes. Stir constantly. Add more vegetable oil if needed. Add beef stock, red currant jelly, garlic, bay leaves, and wine. Stir well. Add thyme and meat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes have passed, taste for salt and pepper. Add as needed. Allow to simmer cover for another 45 minutes. Skim off the fat/grease accumulation from the top.
Serve and garnish with fresh parsley.
Enjoy!!!
Printable recipe (PDF) below:
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