Instant Pot Beef Stew.

On December 15, 2021November 28, 2021 By WanjoroIn Recipes1 Comment

I think I may have just found my best beef stew recipe yet!

It is aromatic, rich in colour and flavour, and the beef is so ‘melt in your mouth’ tender, the kids will enjoy it.

Also, it is fast to make as it’s made in the instant pot. Which I really need to make more use of other than for boiling maize and legumes.

You will need:

I kg stewing beef, cut in medium large chunks.
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 chopped onion.
About 1 heaped tbsp of crushed ginger garlic paste, mixed with some coriander seeds and some whole turmeric.
1 tbsp mayonnaise, yes, mayo. I used low fat gluten free option, but any can do.
I cup homemade roasted tomato sauce. 4 Chopped tomatoes will do too. Peeled and chopped.
1 tbsp mixed spice blend. The one picture has cinnamon, cloves, pepper, cardamon and bay leaf.
Salt and pepper.

Method.

Crush the ginger, garlic, turmeric and coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle.

These are the only ground spices I used. The flavour is amazing in this dish!

(I am a firm believer that spices and herbs should not overtake any dish’s natural flavour. A little goes a long way in this meal. We are also lucky here that a lot of our livestock and poultry is still naturally reared which makes it more flavourful).

Rub the beef chunks with the mixed spice and mayo, as well as a teaspoon on the ginger garlic paste. You can let it marinate overnight if possible or at least half a day.

Switch on your instant pot and select sautè function.

Add the oil, then the onion, followed by the remaining ginger garlic paste. Let cook without it burning then add the tomato sauce and the meat. Cover.

Select meat function on the instant pot.

Mine cooked for thirty minutes at normal pressure. Let it release pressure naturally for about ten minutes then do a quick pressure release carefully.

Check seasoning and adjust accordingly.

This is what it looks like without further simmering.

You can have it this way, just remember to garnish with some coriander leaves.

If you however want to thicken the sauce and deepen the brown colour further, select the sauté function again and let it cook for about 8 minutes, keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t burn.

The sauce will thicken further and the brown colour will deepen.

This meal is so good. Once served, you may think it was made for hours.

Serve it with a side of your choice. We had ours with celery rice. I have already shared the recipe for that here.

Instant Pot Goat Curry.

On June 24, 2021June 21, 2021 By WanjoroIn RecipesLeave a comment

We love our goat meat in this family. We eat more goat than beef, chicken and fish. And it is good for you; lower in calories and sodium than beef, has vitamin B, calcium and is a great source of protein, among other benefits.

I decided to make this in my instant pot as I realised I do not use it much and I was also curious to find out how the meat would turn out.

Let’s get started.

You will need, I kg goat meat, (I used boneless as it is what I had, but bone in meat is better). Ginger garlic paste, onion, sliced tomato, and a teaspoon of mixed spice that I have already shared in my curried goat recipe here.

Marinate your meat in a tbsp of the ginger garlic paste, a small pinch of grated turmeric and the spice blend. You can let it marinate overnight or for a few hours.

Set instant pot on and on sauté mode. Add a tbsp of coconut oil once hot then add the onions.

I had some leftover green pepper, so I tossed it in too. Let the onions cook till soft then add the tomatoes. Let cook and mix well.

You can also add some salt and pepper at this point.

Add your marinated meat and mix well into the onion, tomato mixture. Let is sauté a bit.

Add a half cup of water and switch off sauté mode.

Select meat mode, cover the instant pot properly with the vent facing the right direction and it will cook for 30 minutes.

I let it release pressure naturally for about ten minutes, then did a quick pressure release.

The meat is tender, the broth is full of flavour and tasty too.

Remember to garnish with chopped coriander and a squeeze of lemon before serving.

We had ours with a simple pea pilaf, fried plantain and a tomato cucumber salad.

The pea pilau was onion fried till golden with some garlic and a tbps of tomato paste. Then added pilau masala, salt, green peas and rice to make a delicious spiced rice dish.

Colourful, filling, tasty and easy to make. What’s not to love about this plate?

Do you have an ipot? What are some of the recipes you make in it?

Instant Pot Arrowroot and Eggplant Curry.

On August 17, 2020July 28, 2020 By WanjoroIn Recipes3 Comments

Let me just appreciate my SIL Pesh first, who took the time to bring my instant pot to me in Kampala, it is a life saver and I am on a roll learning to cook all sorts of meals with it. I have no idea why I was not using it as much back home.

Today’s meal is an interesting mix and do not worry, it can be made on the stove top too. Arrow root is a favourite from back home and eggplants too, so why not make them into a delicious curry? Yummy and filling enough for a meatless Monday recipe. Let’s get started.