I grew up with grandma’s steaming bowl of stew that would make my fingers sticky and smell like garlic. My husband grew up with the same stew on another side of the continent, 9,000 kms away. It tells me beef stew was an Eastern European traditional dish that fills your house and clothes with a stew smell.
The same sweet smell of onions crawls from a neighbours’ house into my garage every morning I open it to take kids to school. I know exactly when grandma is cooking dinner. I find many immigrants cooking dinner first thing in the morning and some of them having it for breakfast. I remember my relatives eating borscht for breakfast, accompanied by a slice of rye bread, a clove of garlic and a shot of vodka. And then probably went to work. True stories…Who needs therapy?!:)
I had all intentions to make a traditional beef stew with potatoes, just to find out I was out of potatoes. Quinoa stew it is and it was amazing! My kids are not huge fans of quinoa, depends on the sauce. This kind of quinoa they ate no problem. 4 year old squeezed some organic ketchup on top. OMG, even a layer is fine, just eat it!
Note, I love adding a bit of garlic at the end. It adds a depth of flavour, different from cooked garlic. But you don’t have to if you prefer very mild garlic taste. I’m Ukrainian, so garlic all the way.
Enjoy this healthy quinoa stew!
Clean Eating Beef Quinoa Stew
Ingredients
- 1 large onion coarsely chopped
- 4 large carrots sliced
- 1 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- 2 lbs eye of round beef roast cut into 1″ cubes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 3 cups chicken stock low sodium
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 8 garlic cloves sliced
- 3 bay leaves
- 5 peppercorns
- 1 cup quinoa uncooked
- 2 tsp garlic powder or 1 garlic clove crushed
- 1 cup peas fresh or frozen
- 1/3 cup dill or parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat large deep skillet on medium heat and swirl oil to coat. Add onion and carrots, cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.
- Return skillet to medium – high heat and add beef, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook until golden brown, stirring as necessary. If your meat releases a lot of juices and water, just increase heat and let it cook off. Watch closely not to burn.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together chicken stock and cornstarch, pour over meat. Add previously cooked onion and carrots, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 45 minutes. In the meanwhile, cook quinoa using how to cook quinoa stovetop or Instant Pot quinoa for perfect results.
- When meat is ready, add garlic powder or freshly crushed garlic, and stir. This adds a depth of flavour. Discard bay leaves and peppercorns. Add cooked quinoa, peas and fresh herbs, gently stir and serve warm.
Notes
- Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freeze: Fully cook, cool completely and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw on a stovetop with a splash of water covered on low.
Thanks so much for your blog, I enjoy cooking the recipes & my family loves eating them, especially the stews. I just wanted to say thank you & I’m looking forward to trying more recipes, I really adore the Ukrainian style & taste.
I really appreciate that you took the time to send me this comment Karen. It means a lot to me that you are enjoying my recipes!
Hi there! This is a staple at home. I was wondering if you had the nutrition values for this?
Thanks for sharing your amazing recipes!
Hi Christine! I am so happy that this stew is a staple at your house. We are just in the midst of making some changes with our website. So sorry for the inconvenience. I have updated the recipe card with all the nutritional info for the stew now!
I made this once and it was delicious. I want to make it again using my crockpot, how would you change recipe? I would probably cook quinoa separately and add at the end, right? Thank you!
Right!
Would you change anything else? Thanks!
I would cook meat in 1 cup broth and then add slurry with cornstarch at the end and simmer until thickened. I would think 4 hours on High or 8 hours on Low.
This was yummy. My husband loved it. Thank you!
Peggy! You are very welcome!
This is delicious! I like beef barley stew but was searching for a good gluten-free version to make for a potluck. I got many compliments on this!
I’m so happy to read this! Thanks for your positive feedback, Janilyn!
If I use an ista pot should I cook the quinoa first or just follow the recipe as shown without increasing the liquid. Thank you! This looks yummy
I would add 1:1 ratio quinoa and water all together and cook for 20 mins on high.