Rich and hearty One Pot Beef and Pumpkin Stew, packed with traditional Vietnamese classic flavors

Comfort food at its best.

That’s exactly what this Vietnamese one pot beef and pumpkin stew is. How could you say no?

Simple, delightful and perfect one pot dish to make on a chill weeknight, this dish combines perfectly some of the classic Vietnamese flavors. Lemongrass, ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar to name a few ingredients that go into this hearty one pot beef and pumpkin stew.

Tender, fall-apart beef stew made on the stovetop! You heard it right. I know it takes a couple of hours and it does require some attention but you can throw the pan in the oven if it works better for you.

There are a couple of tips, I would like to share with you so you can get the most perfect, rich, hearty beef stew. No-one likes dried, tough meat or mushy veggies.

First step and the most important is choosing your beef cut. I always go with chuck. Have tried many recipes where it was stated that you can go with any cuts of meat because the long and slow cooking process will make it tender and so on. Well, it is not quite so. So, I’ll stick with chuck because I am getting each and every time melting tender beef. Yum!

I also like to add vegetables towards the end of the cooking time, with about 30 minutes time left. This way, they won’t fall apart and get mushy. That will totally be yuck.

Serve this amazingly fragrant one pot beef and pumpkin stew with a bowl of steamed rice or some toasted sourdough bread and a red wine glass. Preferably Shiraz. South Australian Shiraz. Barossa Valley my favorite 🙂 Luckily, I can still get it 🙂

Vietnamese One Pot Beef and Pumpkin Stew

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours

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Ingredients

• 2 lbs/ 1 kg boneless beef chuck, cut into cubes
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 lemongrass stalk, cut into big pieces and bruised
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon minced ginger
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 jalapeño chillies, seeds removed and finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 lb./ 450g butternut squash, peeled and cubed
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut in rounds
• 2 cups beef stock
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• fresh basil and coriander leaves, chopped to garnish
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, mix flour, lemongrass, garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar and minced ginger. Add the beef and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Over high heat, add oil to a large skillet or large Dutch oven and sear the beef quickly in batches, giving each beef piece enough room to get really browned. Set the seared beef aside and keep the lemongrass to add later in the stew.
3. Add some more olive oil to the pan then chopped onion and chillies and fry for a couple of minutes.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves and lemongrass and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add seared beef to the pan, beef stock and bring slowly to simmer.
5. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for 1 hour and 30 minutes, checking and mixing occasionally.
6. With almost 40 minutes left into cooking time, add carrots and pumpkin cubes to the pan and incorporate into stew. Place back the lid and add some for beef stock, if necessary. Simmer for another 30-40 minutes until beef, carrots and pumpkin are tender.
7. Remove bay leaf, lemongrass before serving warm with fresh basil chopped sprinkled on top.
8. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 grams
Amount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0g