Thick and Savory Beef Stew

This recipe was completely inspired by my mom. I went over to my parents for dinner and my mom used left over pot roast and gravy she had made to make a beef stew. It was the best stew I'd ever had, I was pretty sure it was because of the gravy. And I was right, the gravy makes a world of difference. I don't know why I never thought to try it that way, but it works so well. It's thick and very beefy, but overall about the same nutrition as using plain beef or chicken broth. You can fancy this up with additional spices and fresh herbs, but this is a great basic stew recipe.

Small disclaimer, hideous picture quality! This was probably day 3 of the stew, I had been getting home from work after day. So instead of having time to take a good photo when it was hot and fresh, I just snapped a quick picture at work with my phone so I could post this recipe!

Thick and Savory Beef Stew

      serves 5

• 1 lb boneless diced Beef
• 3 peeled and chopped Russet Potatoes, a little under 1.5 lbs
• 8 ounces sliced White Mushrooms
• 8 ounces sliced or diced Carrots
• 1 small White onion, chopped
• 12 ounce jar Beef Gravy, I used Heinz 
• 24 ounces water, I just filled the gravy jar twice
• 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp. Corn Starch

In a large pot heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add the beef, mushrooms, and onions and saute until the beef has browned a bit. Add in the potatoes and carrots then cover with the jar of gravy. I filled the jar twice with water to get the rest of the gravy out and it was enough water to completely cover the meat and veggies. Let this come up to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium low and continue cooking for 25 minutes. When there was about 5 minutes left I mixed 1/3 cup of the cooking liquid with 2 tbsp of corn starch. Add this mixture into the stew and give it a stir. Let this cook over medium heat for the last 5 minutes to really thicken up the stew.

The texture of the broth was wonderful. It was thick like the gravy your pour over your turkey on Thanksgiving, but not so thick that it loses it's stew consistency. This is wonderful served over rice, or served alone with a bread roll on the side. I actually really enjoyed this with a Hawaiian roll, what a great meal. Hope you enjoy! If you're reheating after a couple of days and it's too thick, add this to a pot along with a splash of chicken or beef stock and simmer until hot.

Per serving this is 273 calories, 9 grams of fat, 539 mg of sodium, 503 mg of potassium, 24 grams of carbohydrates and 24 grams of protein.