• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

The real work of an opposition party is to oppose.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

I like political parties that aren’t owned by foreign adversaries.

Museums are not America’s attic for its racist shit.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

“A king is only a king if we bow down.” – Rev. William Barber

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Fight them, without becoming them!

We still have time to mess this up!

The press swings at every pitch, we don’t have to.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

Jesus watching the most hateful people claiming to be his followers

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

This chaos was totally avoidable.

I would try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Republicans: “Abortion is murder but you can take a bus to get one.” Easy peasy.

“Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.”

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

There are some who say that there are too many strawmen arguments on this blog.

Mobile Menu

  • Seattle Meet-up Post
  • 2025 Activism
  • Targeted Political Fundraising
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2025 Activism
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Food & Recipes / Cooking / Friday Recipe Exchange: Bourbon Beef Stew

Friday Recipe Exchange: Bourbon Beef Stew

by TaMara|  November 13, 20159:14 pm| 27 Comments

This post is in: Cooking, Food, Recipes

FacebookTweetEmail

Bourbon Beef Stew

Hoping this works tonight and all the posts don’t end up looking like stew or Bixby’s foot. From the blog:

Just got back from an awesome play date for Bixby and lunch with friends for me. It sounds like we are in for a big snow storm next week and I am not ready. But the weekend is supposed to be nice, so we’ll get out and enjoy it while we can.

Speaking of snow, we had our first real snow this week, along with thunder, wind and rain. Although the inch of snow is long gone, the temperatures stayed cold enough for several days to make soups and stews the recipes of choice this week.

I began the week out by making Cream of Chicken Soup, recipe here.

Next up, the weekly dinner menu was Hearty Tomato Soup and Awesome Grilled Cheese, full menu, recipes and shopping list are all here.

DSC_1332 (1600x1060)

JeffreyW went with the ultimate comfort food (above), Baked Macaroni and Cheese, click here.

And if you want to spice things up, my friend Alton (not that one) makes Carne en su Jugo, recipe here –  there is also a full dinner menu and recipes at that link.

For the pet lovers, there is a Bixby update this week – he discovered piles of fall leaves.

What’s on your menu this weekend? We have a new movie theater opening, so that and a pottery show are on the agenda here. Are there good things cooking in your kitchen? Share your favorite soups and stews, I can always use something new for my recipe box. Especially with more cold on the way.

For tonight’s featured recipe (pictured at the top of the post), I played around with my basic stew recipe to make it bit more fun when friends came over for dinner this week. I didn’t have any wine handy, but always keep a bottle of good whisky in the pantry, so that became the little something extra for this one.

Bourbon Beef Stew

  • 1 lb chuck roast
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/4 cup bourbon (more as desired)
  • 1 small yellow onion, peeled and cut into large chunks
  • 4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 rutabaga or parsnip, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 medium potatoes, scrubbed well and cut into large chunks
  • 1 bay leaf
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup flour

skillet, dutch oven or slow cooker

Trim fat from chuck roast and cut into 1-inch pieces. Heat oil in skillet, add beef and quickly brown on all sides. Reduce heat, add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add beef and garlic to dutch over or slow cooker. Deglaze skillet and add liquid to the beef mixture.

Add bourbon, vegetables, bay leaf and then add enough water to cover everything.

For stove top, bring to a low boil and stir occasionally. Once it begins to bubble, reduce heat to medium low cover and cook for 1 hour (longer will give you more flavor – reduce heat to low after 1 hour).  Stir occasionally.

For slow cooker – cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Then add the thickening sauce (below) and cook on high, uncovered, until thickened.

To thicken, heat 1 tbsp of butter and 1/4 quarter cup flour in skillet, stirring constantly until the flour is golden. Slowly whisk in about 1/2 cup broth from the stew until smooth. Whisk mixture into the stew, bring to a low boil, stirring constantly until stew is thickened. Reduced heat and let simmer 10 minutes and serve.

That’s it for this week. Have a terrific weekend – TaMara

12241693_10153680610482480_1687658135300148264_n

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Horrifying.
Next Post: Very Early AM Open Thread »

Reader Interactions

27Comments

  1. 1.

    Another Holocene Human

    November 13, 2015 at 9:29 pm

    Help, I need a new every day meal item that can be eaten on the go without a fork and requires virtually no preparation and is not a deli chicken sandwich on gluten free bread. (Or a peanut butter sandwich–that was my old go-to. I’m also burned out on sweet potato.) I feel like eating salty deli chicken daily isn’t good for me and I have questions about this bread I’m consuming like a sawmill consumes logs, also.

    I genuinely do not have to time for lengthy prep or lengthy eating but if you feel the need to lecture me, don’t let me stop you. It will change absolutely nothing but at least we’ll all know you’re the kind of person to hector someone you’ve never met about shit that’s none of your business.

  2. 2.

    WereBear

    November 13, 2015 at 9:29 pm

    Loves me some Bixby!

    The stew looks fab.

  3. 3.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 13, 2015 at 9:37 pm

    @Another Holocene Human: I don’t know about *no* preparation, but an alternative to “deli” chicken is to buy one of the rotisserie chickens that’s sold in every supermarket. Peel off the skin, and the meat is usually tender and no-salt-added. Shred/slice some off – one of those chickens lasts me several days. If you don’t want to put it on bread, then a nice leaf lettuce, like preferably Boston (more expensive) or red leaf (less.) Make a wrap in a large leaf. Add bean/alfalfa sprouts from the produce section, or shredded carrots. If you want to slice a bit, chops some scallions. All of this can be prepared in advance in a few minutes and stored in sealed containers in the fridge. Sauce/dressing is up to you. But none of this is harder than making a sandwich.

  4. 4.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 13, 2015 at 9:39 pm

    ETA, if you tire of chicken, buy some cooked shrimp and do the same thing. Still no/low salt, no gluten, still quick prep.

  5. 5.

    MomSense

    November 13, 2015 at 9:39 pm

    @Another Holocene Human:

    Hummus in a wheat pita or wrap with a bunch of good lettuce and veggies drizzled with a bit of balsamic.

    Bixby is awesome!

    Grilled cheese and tomato soup is one of my favorite combos.

  6. 6.

    MomSense

    November 13, 2015 at 9:41 pm

    @MomSense:

    Hummus can be made really flavorful with garlic, roasted red pepper, pine nuts, harsh masala, etc. doesn’t have to be bland.

  7. 7.

    Percysowner

    November 13, 2015 at 9:48 pm

    If you can buy hard boiled eggs (sometimes they are already shelled) at the store, you can throw together a quick egg salad sandwich or deviled eggs. It’s not prep free, but all you have to do is mash the eggs and add mayo and mustard or whatever you like and throw it between a couple of slices of bread. Or you can just eat the eggs by themselves if you want no prep, just sprinkle with salt and pepper.

  8. 8.

    SiubhanDuinne

    November 13, 2015 at 9:49 pm

    Bixby’s foot is YOOOOGE!

    Also, too, very classy.

  9. 9.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    November 13, 2015 at 9:52 pm

    I misplaced my favorite beef stew recipe years ago and have never been able to find one I liked as much. It had beef, beer, tomato paste, baby carrots and peas (you ran hot water over frozen peas and stirred them in just before serving).

  10. 10.

    NotMax

    November 13, 2015 at 9:57 pm

    Interesting question: What is the ultimate comfort food?

    Each and everyone’s own list of course varies.

    Topping my own rundown:

    Pot roast and mashed potatoes.

    Kasha varnishkes.

    Hearty beef and barley soup with marrow bones.

    French onion soup (prepared with a heavy hand on the sherry, natch).

    Lasagne (with oodles of meat and real ricotta).

    Thick split pea soup (with a light drizzle of Worcestershire sauce swirled in just before eating).

  11. 11.

    SiubhanDuinne

    November 13, 2015 at 10:01 pm

    @NotMax:

    Tapioca, preferably still warm, and with a nice sprinkling of freshly-grated nutmeg.

  12. 12.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    November 13, 2015 at 10:15 pm

    Also, since I think we all need a musical break from the news, here’s Lea Salonga singing a duet of “A Whole New World” at a Ham4Ham show a few days ago.

    If you know Tagalog, you may get some amusement out of the “Taglish” song she sings first, to Lin-Manuel’s enormous embarrassment.

  13. 13.

    Germy

    November 13, 2015 at 10:19 pm

    @Another Holocene Human: I usually follow Maria Bamford’s advice for cooking.

  14. 14.

    Sandia Blanca

    November 13, 2015 at 10:21 pm

    @Percysowner: (Really replying to Another Holocene Human)
    I was going to mention the boiled, shelled eggs available at Costco. Eat a couple of those with the seasoning of your choice, then some cut-up raw veggies in a container or bag, maybe some Snapea crisps for a treat, and a piece of fruit (apple or pear is easy).

  15. 15.

    Germy

    November 13, 2015 at 10:25 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): I recently read an article about Frank Fay on the classic showbiz blog, then watched some of his pre-code movie work on youtube.

    Very subtle wit, but apparently one of the most horrible, racist human beings to ever tell a joke onstage. His marriage to Barbara Stanwyck inspired the original A Star Is Born.

  16. 16.

    NotMax

    November 13, 2015 at 10:32 pm

    @Mnemosyne

    (Sung to the tune of the “Animaniacs” theme.)

    Come join the Hamimaniacs
    We’re obsessive to the max
    Lin-Manuel is our god
    (And not just for his bod)
    We’re Hamimaniacs

    ;)

  17. 17.

    chopper

    November 13, 2015 at 10:48 pm

    @NotMax:

    matzo. ball. soup.

    there is none better for comfort. none.

  18. 18.

    CZAnne

    November 13, 2015 at 10:55 pm

    @Another Holocene Human:

    How do you feel about the various flatbreads — flat outs, corn tortillas, rice paper? My default for a long while was rotisserie chicken turned into chicken salad smeared on the gluten-free flatbread of the week (usually with lettuce/cucumber sticks stuffed in). I’m personally partial to rice paper, but all of the above work fine. Wrap like burrito and they’re easy one-handed. Costco’s chicken salad is tasty, not too deadly on the sodium, and very low prep. The flatbreads have the advantage of being a good handle and relatively easy on the blood sugar. And they do make decent club sammie rolls, too.

    Current go-to is not as one-handed friendly, but might be modifiable for your tastes, and does require some initial set up. Smash half a pound of liverwurst with an equal block of cream cheese, add brown mustard to taste. Store in a jar in the fridge. Serving is a heaping spoonful, with a handful of cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices and rice crackers and an apple on the side. The spread works on flatbreads, too. If liverwurst isn’t your thing, cream cheese goes well with smoked salmon and diced cucumber, or crushed olives, or a tomato based tapenade. (Yes, I read A Wrinkle in Time at an impressionable age and developed a taste for foods most eight year olds find reprehensible because book-bestie ate liverwurst and cream cheese with tomatoes.)

    Follow up with a mint.

  19. 19.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 13, 2015 at 10:58 pm

    @chopper: Beer cheese soup. I am from Wisconsin.

  20. 20.

    Yutsano

    November 13, 2015 at 11:01 pm

    @NotMax: A good homemade mac and cheese. Or tuna and noodles.

  21. 21.

    benw

    November 13, 2015 at 11:02 pm

    @NotMax: Spaghetti with marinara sauce and a shitload of grated Parm.

  22. 22.

    debbie

    November 13, 2015 at 11:10 pm

    @NotMax:

    Lamb shanks, rice pudding, matzo ball soup. Not all at once.

  23. 23.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 13, 2015 at 11:20 pm

    @debbie: Looks like a three course meal to me.

  24. 24.

    CaseyL

    November 13, 2015 at 11:29 pm

    My comfort food when I’m not feeling well is Chinese food, delivered to my door. Pot-stickers and wonton soup, in particular.

    Comfort food I make myself: nachos, heavy on the cheese and olives, with guac and sour cream.

    And eggs are one of my favorite foods: hard boiled, scrambled, easy over. With cheese.

    …not feeling too well tonight, in fact. Time to find the Snappy Dragon menu!

  25. 25.

    Roger Moore

    November 13, 2015 at 11:31 pm

    @NotMax:

    What is the ultimate comfort food?

    Grilled cheese and tomato soup
    Carrots fresh from the garden
    Hot chocolate with whipped cream on top
    ETA: Bread pudding

  26. 26.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 13, 2015 at 11:34 pm

    @Roger Moore:

    Grilled cheese and tomato soup

    Oh yes.

    ETA: Bread pudding

    That too.

  27. 27.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    November 14, 2015 at 1:35 am

    @NotMax:

    :-p

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

On The Road - beckya57 - Copper Canyon, Mexico, April 2025
Image by beckya57 (7/31/25)

World Central Kitchen

Donate

Recent Comments

  • Geminid on Goebbels In, Goebbels Out (Open Thread) (Jul 9, 2025 @ 8:23pm)
  • Jackie on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 8:23pm)
  • Scout211 on Wednesday Night Open Thread (Jul 9, 2025 @ 8:23pm)
  • WTFGhost on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 8:21pm)
  • TONYG on Open Thread: Good for Rep. Jeffries (Jul 9, 2025 @ 8:20pm)

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
No Kings Protests June 14 2025

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)
Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

Social Media

Balloon Juice
WaterGirl
TaMara
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
DougJ NYT Pitchbot
mistermix

Keeping Track

Legal Challenges (Lawfare)
Republicans Fleeing Town Halls (TPM)
21 Letters (to Borrow or Steal)
Search Donations from a Brand

Feeling Defeated?  If We Give Up, It's Game Over

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!