Two Thursdays ago, my friend Sonya emailed me:
Hey! You guys around this weekend? We have the urge to make a big pot of stew and drink wine with someone. Please say yes!!!
I could not have replied fast enough. Yes! Yes! Yes! Is tomorrow too soon? Or how about now? Can I come over right now? It was another single-digit temperature week up here in New York and most of my day was spent holed up in my (old, drafty) house, dressed like Shaun White, and listening to 1010 WINS for any breaking news on the next storm rolling in.
I know what you’re thinking right now — another winter whinefest from Jenny, right? Right about now, the entire population Minnesota is rolling their eyes at me.
Not so fast. Believe it or not, today I’d like to focus on the upshot to the cold weather snap in New York (though it seems to have tapered off for the time being) namely the dinner invitations coming in left and right from people like Sonya — people who want to make a big pot of stew and drink wine. With us!
I’ll tell you something else about these people: They know their way around a kitchen. To determine this, one need look no further than the cast iron pans and Dutch Ovens sitting atop their stoves. Each one seemed to boast the kind of patina that you just can’t fake, as though it has been handed down by the cook’s great-grandmother. Inside the pot? These days, there’s a 99% chance it’s some kind of stewy beef. Not just something like our back-pocket Belgian Beef Stew [1] that we are used to scaring up in under an hour on a weeknight. I’m talking meat that has spent some quality time in the oven, braising and reducing to deep concentrated deliciousness, making the house smell like the only place you want to be. Check these out…
Braisy Beefy Stewy Dinners Fit for Cold-Weather Entertaining
Carbonnade of Beef with Prunes [2] served with big fat noodles, simple roast carrots, crusty bread. Perfect. Cooked for us by Sonya [3] and Pierre.
Beef Bourguignon [4] (above, photo credit: Food Network) at Todd and Anne’s house. Should also be noted that they served the kids homemade mac and cheese, too, which ended up being decimated by the grown-ups.
Braised Short Ribs with Dijon [5] at our friends Reagan and Scott’s house. The beef literally melted off the bones.
Moroccan Beef Stew [6] (shown way up top, photo by Brian Leatart for Bon Appetit) made with golden raisins and served with couscous by our neighbors Rebecca and David, who have two kids under two. (A better person might have felt more guilty about this. Like maybe I should’ve been the one cooking for them?)
Thai Beef Stew with Lemongrass and Noodles [7] OK fine, no one has actually made this for us yet, but how good does that look? Currently accepting invitations….
Stay warm!