• 1 750 ml bottle dry red wine
  • 2½-lbs Beef for Stew
  • 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp. kosher salt, plus more
  • 8 oz. Beef Bacon or Beef Bacon Cubes, cut in 1″ pieces
  • 3 medium red onions, cut in quarters
  • 3 medium carrots, cut in 2 or 3 pieces on the diagonal
  • 8 garlic cloves, minced, divided
  • 4 large sprigs thyme
  • 2 Tbsp. white miso paste
  • 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup parsley leaves and tender stems
  • Crusty bread (for serving)

 

Preheat oven to 300F. Open bottle of wine and pour yourself a glass, then proceed with prepping your meat and vegetables. Cut any large pieces of beef so that they’re all roughly 2″ cubes. Transfer beef to a large bowl, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.

Place beef bacon pieces in a large Dutch oven. Cook bacon over medium heat, stirring often, until crisp, 11–13 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a large bowl, leaving fat behind in the Dutch oven.

Increase heat to medium-high and, using tongs, add beef in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed—seriously, don’t touch it!—until well browned on one side, 5–7 minutes. Turn and cook until well browned on the other side, 5–7 minutes longer. Don’t rush this part—browning the beef well will contribute tons of flavor to the stew. Transfer beef to bowl with bacon.

Reduce heat to medium. Add onions to pot cut side down. Cook, undisturbed, until golden brown on one side, 2–3 minutes. Turn and cook until browned on the other side, 2–3 minutes longer.

Add carrots, 7 cloves minced garlic, thyme, and miso; season with salt. (If miso seems like a weird addition here, just trust—it’ll lend tons of savory depth to your braising liquid without making the whole thing taste like miso soup.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is just beginning to turn golden and miso coats bottom of pot, about 2 minutes.

Sprinkle 2 Tbsp. flour evenly over vegetables and cook, stirring, until veggies are coated, about 30 seconds. This will help to thicken the braising liquid.

Add the rest of your bottle of wine to pot, scraping bottom of pot with a wooden spoon to get up any stuck bits, and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring, until you can no longer smell the alcohol, about 2 minutes.

Nestle beef and bacon back into pot along with any juices that have accumulated. Add 2 cups water (or enough to just barely cover beef with a few pieces poking out). Return to a simmer, cover pot with lid, then transfer to oven—we love braising in the oven because the heat is much more even than it would be on the stovetop. Bake 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Uncover pot, giving everything a good stir, and continue to cook until beef is very tender, 30–60 minutes longer.

While beef is cooking, finely chop 1 cup parsley and transfer to a small bowl. Finely grate reserved garlic clove into bowl with parsley and toss to combine.  Taste and season stew with salt, if needed. Divide stew among bowls and top with parsley gremolata. Serve with crusty bread alongside.