BEST South African Beef Stew with Vegetables Recipe
A hearty and flavorful South African beef stew made with tender chunks of beef, seasonal vegetables, and rich spices. Simmered slowly with chutney, red wine, and stock for deep, comforting flavor. Easy to make on the stovetop, perfect for family dinners or cozy weekends.
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 500 g (1.1 lbs) beef chucks or other stewing beef
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon plain flour (all purpose flour) or cornstarch (cornflour)
For the stew
- 1 medium onion
- 1 bell pepper/ capsicum
- g garlic cloves
- 7 g (about 0.25 oz) fresh ginger root or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- ½ tablespoon chutney or sugar
- 2 bay leaves
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves or 3 whole cloves
- 350 ml (about 1½ cups) vegetable broth or beef broth
- 2 medium carrots , about 150 g/ 5.3 oz
- 3 medium potatoes , about 300 g/ 10 ½ oz
- 200 g ( about 7 oz zucchinis
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
- Pat dry the meat with paper towels. Then cut it into bite-sized pieces, season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with flour.
- Heat oil in a large, heavy-based pot over medium-high heat and brown the meat until you get a golden crust on the beef. This took me about 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, peel and mince the garlic and onion. Then peel and grate the ginger root and dice the bell peppers. Remove the meat from the pot and set it aside.
- After browning the meat, reduce the heat to medium-low. In the same pot (without cleaning it), add the onion and sauté for about 3 minutes.
- Then add the garlic, ginger (if you’re using fresh ginger; otherwise, the ground ginger can be added later together with the other spices), and bell peppers, and cook for another 3 minutes or until soft.
- Add the spices (curry, turmeric, thyme, smoked paprika, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and bay leaves), tomato paste, and chutney or sugar. Combine well and cook for half a minute.
- Add back the browned beef and mix well. Then stir in the broth and red wine or red grape juice. Increase the heat to bring the pot to a boil. Once it boils, turn down the heat to medium-low, cover with the lid, and let it cook for about 60 minutes.
- There’s no need to stir during the cooking process, but since stoves and pots differ, you can stir occasionally to make sure the meat does not stick to the bottom of the pot or that the pot does not run out of liquid.
- About 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, peel the potatoes and carrots and cut them into chunks. Then cut the zucchini into chunks as well. Stir well, season with salt and pepper if necessary, and add the vegetables.
- Cover and let cook for about 30 minutes on medium heat. About 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, remove the lid and cook to the end while stirring occasionally and gently.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Then remove the bay leaves and thyme sprigs from the stew and serve with hot pap, yellow rice, steamed bread, vetkoeks, mielie bread, or any side of your choice.
- This beef stew keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Simply thaw it in the fridge overnight and reheat gently.