This post is sponsored by the Certified Angus Beef ® brand in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC. All opinions are my own. 

December is such a busy time in my house with holiday concerts (for both kids!), end-of-the-year events, and, of course, holiday shopping. (My family celebrates Hanukkah but we also celebrate Christmas with our non-Jewish relatives, so my shopping is definitely not done.) Right now, my to-do list is a mile long and includes things like buying (or making) presents for my kids’ teachers, planning a 6th grade class holiday party — without any food thanks to our school district’s wellness policy — and mailing my holiday cards.

Interestingly, everyone in this house still expects to eat and with the cold weather and my fifteen-year-old facing final exams, everyone wants comfort food. Do not try to feed a high school sophomore studying for exams a salad! These kids need sustenance! But many classic comfort foods, like hearty stews and braises, typically take hours of slow simmering on the stove. Yeah, no. That is not happening. Nothing is slow in December.

The Instant Pot to the rescue, once again! One of the many advantages of the Instant Pot is its ability to make delicious, flavorful stews and braises in a fraction of the time it would take to make the same dish on the stove. I have been especially impressed with beef stew cooked in the Instant Pot. The beef comes out fork-tender and the sauce tastes like it simmered for hours and hours. I can even make beef stew on a weeknight, which I never thought was possible.

Beef stew is an inexpensive cut of meat — I bought all the meat for this recipe for only $15 — but you still want to buy top-quality beef for the best results. One way to know that you are getting excellent beef is to look for Certified Angus Beef® brand.  All Certified Angus Beef® brand surpasses the USDA’s stringent Prime standards, and meets ten quality specifications – even the more economical cuts, like beef stew meat.

When you think of beef stew, you might think of the French classic boeuf bourguignon, which is made with red wine. But my daughter is stressed out about her French final, so I decided to make an English-inspred beef stew instead. (Of course, she is also stressed out about her English final. Hmm….) Instead of red wine, my beef stew is simmered in ale. I add some seasonal root vegetables like carrots and parsnips and serve the finished dish over egg noodles. Comfort food indeed.

Happy holidays and good luck to everyone out there studying for finals!

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Instant Pot Beef and Ale Stew

Ingredients

• 3 lbs. Certified Angus Beef® brand beef stew meat
• 1/2 cup flour
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 TB neutral cooking oil such as canola or grapeseed
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 TB tomato paste
• 2 cups ale
• 1 sprig thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 3 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks and woody core removed, if necessary
• 1 TB red wine vinegar

Instructions

1. Pat beef stew pieces dry and place in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag.
2. Add flour, 1 tsp each of salt and pepper. Shake to coat beef with flour.
3. Heat oil in the Instant Pot using the Saute function set on high.
4. Add some of beef to the pot, being sure not to overcrowd the pot, and brown on all sides, turning as needed. Remove to a plate. Working in batches, brown the remaining pieces of beef.
5. When all the beef has been browned, add the onion to the pot, season with salt and pepper and saute until softened, about five minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir to coat.
6. Add the ale and use a spoon to scrape up the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. (This step is known as deglazing the pot.)
7. Return the beef to the pot and stir. Add the bay leaf and thyme. Cover and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for at least ten minutes.
8. Remove the cover and skim off any grease from the top of the stew.
9. Add the carrots and parsnips, stir to combine and turn Instant Pot to Saute. Saute the stew until it is thickened and the vegetables tender.
10. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt and pepper as needed. Prior to serving add the red wine vinegar to brighten the stew.
11. Serve over mashed potatoes or buttered egg noodles.

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