From Steers to Beers

by Jennifer Brown

At JFM, the kids have grown up, and it’s time to rebrand—and what better time for branding, than during the 2019 Canadian Beef Industry Conference week? (Pun intended!)

So let’s get the show on the road with the Alberta Beef Producers’ pre- conference and Alberta Barley’s Grains to Glass post-conference tours. First, I’m getting in the spirit with a new twist on stew—inspired both by Canadian Beef’s Hearty Beef and Maple Stew recipe and the remainder of my recent harvest of Saskatoon berries from The Saskatoon Farm’s U-pick orchard, located just minutes south of Calgary, Alberta.

The flavour palette behind the development of this recipe is bursting with Canadian motivation—Alberta beef and Saskatoon berries, sweetened with Canadian maple syrup, along with a spice infusion kicked off by Canadian Beef’s stew recipe. I followed Canadian Beef’s how-to instructions to brown the beef, using canola oil, and slow cooked in the oven.

I would be moseying down the wrong trail if I didn’t use Wild Rose Brewery’s Wraspberry Ale as the liquid addition to this cool summer day stew—after all, we are an adulting family now. 

SASKATOON-MAPLE BEEF STEW

*adapted from Canadian Beef’s Hearty Beef and Maple Stew

Did I transfer it all to a larger pan? Yes!

Ingredients

¼ cup (50 mL) all-purpose flour

1 tsp (5 mL) salt

½ tsp (3 mL) ground pepper

2 Tbsp (30 mL) minced fresh ginger

2 cloves minced garlic

3 lb (1.5 kg) stewing beef cubes

3 Tbsp (45 mL) vegetable oil

3 cups (700 mL) Saskatoon berries

2 medium onions, sliced

1 bottle Wild Rose Brewery Wraspberry Ale

½ cup (100 mL) maple syrup

Directions

1.    Pre-heat oven to 325°F (160°C).

2.    Combine flour, salt and pepper. Place beef cubes in a large bowl or plastic bag. Add flour mixture and blend until meat is coated.

3.    Heat oil in a large oven-proof pan. Brown meat, then add remaining ingredients. Stir to mix well, and cover pan with lid or foil, sealing edges well.
 

4.    Bake 2 ½ hours, or until meat is tender and liquid has thickened, stirring occasionally.

Serve with cooked cubed potatoes and peas. Goes great with fresh biscuits or rolls and a cold beer.

Makes 10 servings. Freezes well.

TODAY’S COOKING HINT:

When planning to freeze leftover stew, I cook potatoes separately, and make potato salad out of the extras—frozen cooked potatoes defrost into a crumbly or mushy consistency.