America's Test Kitchen - Season 7 - Eps 3: Best Beef Stew

2007-01-2025 min⭐ 6.9/10

Join us as we uncover the secrets behind a favorite beef stew and streamline a hearty side dish. A basic beef stew can be altered in dozens of ways, usually by adding more ingredients to the pot. But can you go the other way and strip beef stew down to its bare bones (or, to be more precise, to its beef)? If you trade the carrots and potatoes for a mess of onions and add a good dose of beer (instead of red wine) as part of the braising liquid, you’ve created a simple Belgian beef stew called carbonnade à la flamande. Beef, beer, and onions have a natural affinity—think burger, onion rings, and a beer. In a carbonnade, the heartiness of beef melds with the soft sweetness of sliced onions in a lightly thickened broth that is rich, deep, and satisfying, with the malty flavor of beer. We aimed to create the very best version of this cold-weather favorite. Sweet acorn squash makes a worthy partner alongside carbonnade or with many other dishes during the cold weather season, but too often this squash turns out dry and stringy. We wanted to devise a method that ensured sweet, tender squash, without a lot of hassle. Recipes: Carbonnade a la Flamande—Belgian Beef, Beer, and Onion Stew Acorn Squash with Brown Sugar Acorn Squash with Rosemary-Dried Fig Compote Tasting Lab: Beer for Carbonnade Equipment Center: Paring Knives—Updated Science Desk: Are All Microwaves Created Equal?

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About America's Test Kitchen

America's Test Kitchen

Title: America's Test Kitchen

First Air Date: 2001-08-04

Last Air Date: 2025-02-15

Status: Returning Series

Rating: 6.9/10 (from 10 votes)

Language: EN

Seasons: 26

Total Episodes: 638

Network: PBS

Genres: Documentary

Production Companies: Unknown

Synopsis

Equipment reviews, taste tests, and recipes from the test kitchen to the home cook. A team of test cooks that viewers have come to love and trust deconstruct recipes and reveal the test kitchen’s secrets to foolproof cooking at home.

Cast

Julia Collin Davison

Julia Collin Davison

Self

Bridget Lancaster

Bridget Lancaster

Self

Jack Bishop

Jack Bishop

Self

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