beer and paprika beef stew

Over the years, as I've become more comfortable cooking and experimenting, I have become more and more obsessed with Ree Drummond.
Not only are her recipes to die for, you don't have to be a certified chef to follow them and make something amazing.
In all honestly, following her site for all these years is originally where my inspiration to start a cooking blog came from.
The way she takes pictures every step of the way is what I love the most about her.
I don't know about you guys, but when I'm following a recipe for the first time I need to know what it's supposed to look like so I can tell that I'm doing it right.
And so far, every recipe I've tried from Ree's blog {and believe me, I've tried quite a few} have all turned out delicious.

This one is no exception.

recipe for stew adapted from here

Things you'll need:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
2 lbs stew meat {my store was out of stew meat, so I used a sirloin tip roast}
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups beef or chicken stock
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
ground pepper, to taste
1.5 tsp sugar
4-5 carrots
4-5 red potatoes
2 stalks celery

*Note: My recipe does stray a bit from the original; I had to substitute chicken stock for the beef stock, soy sauce for Worcestershire, and tomato sauce for paste because that's what I had on hand. I also added celery, because it's yummy. Duh.

First, chop up your meat.  Any size cubes will do.

Heat olive oil and butter on medium heat, and cook meat just long enough to brown the sides.

{You'll probably have to do this in two batches, so as not to crowd the meat.}

Slice your cubes in half if you'd like them to be smaller, and then sit aside.

Sauté minced garlic and chopped onions in leftover oil and butter until tender {about 3 minutes or so}.

Grab a beer {any kind will do!} and pour it in.

Add chicken/beef stock, paprika, salt, pepper, sugar, tomato sauce/paste, and soy sauce.

Cover and simmer for 1.5-2 hours.

After simmering, add potatoes, carrots, celery, or any other stew-friendly veggies you like.

Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes, until vegetables are tender.

*Also, my stew didn't reduce as much as the original recipe suggested, so I added a little flour to thicken it.

Only about a tablespoon or two.

Thicker stew is just a personal preference though.

After the vegetables have been cooked to preferred tenderness, stir and serve!

This would be great with some kind of bread, hence why I took it a step further and made our bowls out of it.

If you try this, let me know how it turns out/if you did anything differently!

I'm always looking for ways to improve recipes that have thus far been successful.

Happy Tuesday folks!

Hope you're all staying warm and dry at the polls!