Go to the Recipe: Chocolate and Mustard Stew
Is there any technique-reason that everything is salted at the end (looks like the beef doesn't pick up any seasoning until it has stewed with the rest of the ingredients for the 20 minutes prescribed), versus, for example seasoning the beef early before searing? Or seasoning once it has been pulled?
just did it, instead of chocolate I used 100% cacao mass , add as much as was balance with the other ingredients , served it wit cacao nibs, it turned out great!
This recipe reflects everything I love about ChefSteps:
1) It gets me to try and learn new techniques like the very dark searing of the meat and tomato paste to build flavor.
2) It let's me experiment with unique flavors like using chocolate in a stew
3) It let's me create dishes of exceptional quality that I'd never see in a restaurant. I've certainly never seen a stew at this level in a high-end restaurant.
One thought about chocolate. I used a Valrhona 61% baking bar. No bitterness at all. Given the reader comments I backed off the amount of chocolate I used by half. Next time I'll use more. It seems we should use at least two numbers when we think about chocolate, the percentage of cocoa and the amount of sugar in the bar. American unsweetened baking chocolate is 100% cocoa with no sugar. But once you go down from 100% some of what is added is sugar but fat is also added along with vanilla and other flavorings. A baking chocolate typically contains between 65% and 95% cocoa but that leaves a lot of room for variation in sweetness.
This recipe reminds me of an upscale style Mexican mole sauce...kudos for that!
Based on the comments I've read the major issue here is the chocolate. I'm going to play it safe and just use half the recommended portion (even though I LOVE dark chocolate). I hope my guests can appreciate the flavors next week lol
This recipe have strong flavor delicious but kid didn’t like
At the end of step 1 it says to return broth to the cooker and completely boil off the liquid. This doesn't sound correct otherwise where does the gravy come from??
Hi Toby, we actually skim the fat off the surface of the broth and that's what you bring back to the pressure cooker. What we're suggesting here is that you cook the moisture just out of this fat to create the roux. Apologies for the confusion (we're realizing our wording isn't as clear as it could be here).
I tend to agree with some of the comments. The amount of dark chocolate seems a bit much and has taken away the true flavor of the beef. I wonder if a reduced amount of dark chocolate would be better or perhaps try some espresso coffee or red wine in the broth.
I suggest dumplings to accompany
200gm self raising flour, 100gm shredded beef suet , water to make soft dough. Divide into 4-6 pieces. Place in pot during the final 20 minute simmer
I made this with lamb leg instead of the beef chuck; it was awesome!
Making it right now with elk!
Thoughts on a replacement for the nobs of butter at the end for a dairy allergy house? lard? pressure cooker arrives today - making this dish over the weekend!
Hi Chris! You should actually just be able to omit it since it's such a small amount!
Is it possible you guys can start using volumes for soft or liquid ingredients like stock butter mustard tomato paste etc? For meats or dry ingredients I'm fine with weight because most items are labeled with ounces and grams but for fluids it's so much more difficult to weigh out 40-50 grams reliably. And I'd prefer not to look up the density of all these liquids and do the calculation haha. I know you can change grams to ounces in the ingredients but I'm pretty sure that's weight not fluid ounces. Thanks
Do you not have a cooking scale? I find it pretty easy to pour (or drizzle) liquids into the mixing bowl or wherever they're going while keeping an eye on the scale. I just stop adding liquid when I have added the proper amount.
It's actually faster, easier and more accurate than measuring by volume.
I made this for my family for the Superbowl instead of our usual chili, and it was fabulous! I had to use soup bones instead of oxtail due to availability issues, and added a bit of parsnip with the potato, but it was extremely well received. Throw in some homemade French bread, and voila! I took some leftovers to work the same day, and ended up sharing the recipe (and the website) with several coworkers. I think we may have a new family tradition!
Used 45g of 60% chocolate. Very rich flavor.
Can't wait to taste that... I'm a bit of chopped parlsey away from it!
Did this last night for a few of my cowokers/friends. Was awesome, little heavy on the chocolaty flavor, so next time I think I might do 75g of Chocolate, 75 Mustard, but still delicious!
The most compelling argument for scales that I give the reluctant is, LESS WASHING UP! Why dirty all those cups and spoons?
Made this today, totally loved it!! I used 85% chocolate and the balance was very good. Not too "chocolaty" at all. I had two plates, 'nuff said. The intensity of the flavors was a bit too much for my wife though. She couldn't finish her plate. Taste bud overload haha.
I did a sous vide of the oxtail for 11 hours at 180 degrees - and then used a dutch oven to do the rest. I used beef broth to thin. To cut the chocolate flavor I added two tablespoons of rice vinegar - and it was a rich thick stew. I just didn't want to use the pressure cooker. Many have done sous vide of oxtail far longer - but after having compared 100 hour, 50 hour, 24 hour, and 11 hour - there is minimal difference (I would prefer 24 hours). But it is a thick and rich food.
Im thinking when I try this recipe that i will omit most or all of the chocolate and instead add a strong chocolat-y stout when cooking the vegetables.
Made this two weeks in a row, we loved it so much! The only mistake made was telling our visiting and food skittish family the title of the stew. "Chocolate and mustard in stew? Um, we're not hungry, but thanks!" Oh well, more for us!!
The only change we made was to only add 1/4 of the amount of chocolate called for, and then slowly added to maybe 1/2 a cup as we tasted.
Any thoughts on substitutes for flour here? I'm thinking of making this for a crowd and there are gluten free folks in there.
This is my second time making this. It came out great both times! Here its served over toasted Italian bread with sous vide egg and truffle oil.
Use gluten free flour like Garbanzo bean flour, or arrowroot powder. Maybe...
Cup4Cup makes a 1:1 gluten free flour replacement, I've found it works well. You can also use King Arthur - they make a GF flour that is good for roux.
looks brilliant cant wait to get my joule!
You should convert this to Joule
If you use cornstarch due to gluten free guests, and corn starch needs cold water first for slurry does that affect it cooking in the hot fat?
This was the perfect thing for a cold winter evening. The only issue I had was a bit of off-balance bitterness, so I figured it could use a little acid. The first thing I came across in the pantry was sherry vinegar. A tablespoon or two to the pot really brought things back to center. I will definitely be making this again.
I made this for my girls 9 and 11 & they totally dug it!
Thanks ChefSteps Gang you rule!
I really don't enjoy chocolate, however I made this and it was excellent on all levels. My three daughters were impressed their dad would cook this for them and enjoy it also.
Hi,
I made this for the second time this weekend, and on Monday I had it for leftovers. Then It occurred to me that peanuts would taste great with this dish.
Wow, what a match ❤️
Just add peanuts, no need to thank me 😉
try rice flour instead
I am so shocked and confused by these positive reviews. I’ve been following chefsteps for a few years and everything has been unequivocally amazing - my go-to biscuits, pecan pie, birthday cakes, St Patrick’s day meal, fried chicken and on and on have come from this group. But this stew was so chocolatey it was inedible. Definitely should have read the comments first and added the chocolate incrementally but damn. I can’t imagine a world where THAT amount of chocolate works for this volume of stew. We had half a bowl and tried to fix it (diluted, added mustard, added sherry vinegar) to no avail. I ended up throwing the rest away, which was such a shame because it tasted so good up to the very last step.
chocolate cocoa and roasted cocoa nibs or coffee are nice pairings here. but I am pretty sure 100gr chocolate would be TOO much. try It by adding little by little. I would stop to 15-25 grams however.
