Beef and Barley Stew

I was looking for tasty ways to use some of my leftover roasted beef and freshly made beef stock when I remembered barley. I had been wanting to try using barley for a while and I though that a beef and barley stew would hit the spot. I also liked this recipe because I would get the chance to use rutabaga which I had kept passing by in the grocery store. Since my beef had already been roasted I skipped the browning of the beef in the recipe below. The beef and barley stew turned out pretty good. It was nice and tasty. The beef was so moist and tender and fall apart in your mouth good. The barley had a really nice texture. It was chewy and had a bit of a bite to it, almost like al dente pasta. The rutabaga fit in nicely with the other root vegetables. I saw several recipes that called for frozen corn or frozen peas but I wanted to try sticking with the more seasonal root vegetables. I served the beef and barley stew with some grated white cheddar cheese for garnish.

Ingredients:
1 pound beef (cut into bite sized pieces)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon oil (or bacon grease)
1 tablespoon oil (or bacon grease)
1 onion (chopped)
2 carrots (peeled and cut into bite sized pieces)
2 stalks celery (cut into bite sized pieces)
1 rutabaga (peeled and cut into bite sized pieces)
4 ounces mushrooms (quartered)
1/3 cup barley
1 cup red wine
* beef stock
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Season the beef with salt and pepper and dust with flour.
2. Heat the oil in a large sauce pan.
3. Add the beef and brown on all sides and set aside.
4. Heat the oil in the same pan.
5. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 3-5 minutes.
6. Add the carrots, celery, rutabaga and mushrooms and saute for a few minutes.
7. Add the barley and saute for a minute.
8. Add the red wine and deglaze the bottom of the pan.
9. Add the beef and pour in the beef stock until everything is covered.
10. Add the bay leaves, salt and pepper.
11. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about an hour. The beef should be nice and tender by this point.

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Irish Lamb Stew