Minced beef and potato stew is our go-to one-pot dish when it is cold and wet outside and we need something warm on the table quickly. We make it at least once a week between October and March.
The trick with this recipe: the peppers are steamed in the Varoma, not cooked in the mixing bowl. There are two reasons for this. First, the peppers stay firm and keep their shape instead of turning to mush. Second, they do not release their moisture into the stew, which keeps the tomato flavour in the mixing bowl clean and concentrated. Adding peppers directly to the stew makes it watery and diluted.
Minced Beef and Potato Stew Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 12 ✓
- 2 red onions
- 15 g sunflower oil
- 80 g carrot
- 200 g beef mince
- 280 g waxy potatoes
- 400 g chopped tomatoes (tinned)
- 30 g tomato puree
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
- 2 tsp vegetable stock powder
- 2 red peppers
Instructions 0 / 8
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1
Chop the onions.
Peel the onions, halve them, place in the mixing bowl, chop for 6 sec / speed 5 and scrape down with the spatula.
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2
Sweat in oil.
Add the oil to the mixing bowl and sweat for 2 min / 120°C / speed 1.
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3
Sweat the carrots and mince.
Meanwhile, peel the carrots and slice into rounds about 5 mm thick. Add the carrots and beef mince to the mixing bowl and sweat for 6 min / 120°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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4
Cut the potatoes.
Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and cut into 1 to 2 cm cubes.
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5
Prepare the peppers.
Wash the peppers, trim them, remove the seeds and cut into 2 to 3 cm pieces.
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6
Add the vegetables to the mixing bowl.
Add the potatoes, tomatoes, tomato puree, salt, pepper, chilli flakes and stock powder to the mixing bowl.
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7
Cook the stew.
Distribute the peppers evenly across the Varoma tray and Varoma steaming dish, close the lid, place the Varoma in position and cook for 15 min / Varoma / reverse direction / speed 1.
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8
Serve.
Serve the stew topped with the peppers.
Gentle steaming of the pepper pieces keeps most of their vitamins intact. Feel free to replace the red pepper with peppers in other colours.
Nutrition per serving
Waxy Potatoes Are a Must
Using waxy potatoes in a stew is not a matter of taste, it is a technical necessity. Floury potatoes fall apart after 15 minutes in the Varoma and turn the stew thick and mushy. That is what you want in a potato soup, but not in a stew where you need distinct pieces. Waxy potatoes hold their shape and still release enough starch to lightly bind the tomato sauce.
We cut the potatoes into 1 to 2 cm cubes. Smaller cubes break down too quickly, while larger cubes stay raw in the centre even as the edges begin to soften. The 1 to 2 cm range is the sweet spot where cooking time and starch release are in balance.
Carrots in Rounds, Not Cubes
We slice the carrots into 5 mm rounds rather than dicing them. Rounds cook evenly because the thickness is consistent throughout. Cubes have edges that soften faster than the centre. After 15 minutes in the Varoma, rounds are cooked through but not soft. Cubes are either falling apart on the outside or still firm in the middle.
The carrots go into the mixing bowl together with the mince and are sweated for 6 minutes at 120°C on speed 1 with reverse direction. Reverse direction prevents the mince from being ground to a paste. Speed 1 stirs gently without chopping the carrots.
Why Tinned Tomatoes Instead of Fresh
We use tinned chopped tomatoes, not fresh ones. Tinned tomatoes are already peeled and par-cooked, have more umami and a stable consistency. Fresh tomatoes release too much water during the 15-minute cooking time and dilute the stew. The tin also provides the tomato liquid, which strengthens the sauce base.
Tomato puree is added on top of that because it intensifies the tomato sauce and deepens the colour. Without tomato puree the sauce stays pale and tastes flat. 30 g to 400 g of tinned tomatoes is the ratio at which the stew tastes of tomato without the puree becoming dominant.
Peppers in the Varoma, Not in the Mixing Bowl
We always steam the peppers in the Varoma and never cook them in the mixing bowl. Peppers release a lot of moisture when cooked, which would water down the stew. In the Varoma that moisture condenses on the lid and drains away instead of dripping into the stew. The peppers stay firm, keep their colour and taste of pepper rather than boiled vegetable water.
We cut the peppers into 2 to 3 cm pieces. Smaller pieces become too soft and larger pieces stay raw in the middle. The pepper pieces are spread evenly across the Varoma tray and the steaming dish. If everything sits only in the tray, the bottom layer cooks faster than the top.
Reverse Direction During Cooking
The 15-minute cooking time runs on reverse direction at speed 1. Reverse direction stirs gently without breaking up the potato cubes. Normal direction would pull the potatoes past the blades and grind down the edges. After 15 minutes you would have mashed potato with mince instead of a proper stew.
Speed 1 is the lowest stirring setting and prevents the stew from catching on the bottom. Without stirring, the mince would stick to the mixing bowl base and burn. Speed 2 or higher would be too vigorous and would destroy the potato texture.
Chilli Flakes as a Heat Anchor
Chilli flakes give the stew a gentle heat that works against the sweetness of the tomatoes and peppers. Without chilli the stew tastes too sweet and one-dimensional. Half a teaspoon is enough for a noticeable but not overpowering heat. Those who prefer no heat can leave out the chilli flakes, but the stew will lack contrast.
The vegetable stock powder boosts the umami base that the tinned tomatoes bring. Two teaspoons are enough to give the stew depth without it tasting of instant stock. More stock powder makes the stew too salty and overpowers the tomatoes.
Making a Batch
The stew keeps in the fridge for three days and often tastes even better reheated because the flavours meld together. We like to make a large batch and warm it up in portions in the microwave. It freezes well too. The potatoes become a little softer after freezing, but they do not go mushy. In the freezer the stew keeps for three months.
More Thermomix® stews and soups:
Goes well with: baguette.
- Thermomix® Pumpkin Soup
- Potato Soup Thermomix®
- Gyros Soup
- Pancake Soup
- Tomato Soup
- Leek Soup and Cheesy Leek Soup
