My Father, who is Greek, inspired me to make this dish.
A lot of love went into this recipe. It’s perfect for a cold Sunday evening, or if you happen to feel under the weather. I also cook this dish if I’m having company over and I really want to impress them with some tender beef and some big flavours.
‘Tava’, means stew in Greek and ‘sleepy time’ because every time Steve and I eat this Tava, we both end up curling up and falling straight to sleep.
Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 3 hours (but its sooooo worth it people)
Health: An epic amount of nutrition
Get This:
2 pounds of stew (grass fed) beef
3 tablespoons olive oil
Big slab of butter
Salt and pepper
1 white onion, diced
4-5 garlic gloves, chopped finely or minced
Half a tube of tomato paste
4 cups of beef stock
3-4 carrots (I don’t peel them) chopped to chunks
1-2 celery stalks, chopped
1 can of kidney beans
3 bay leaves
Freshly chopped parsley or coriander
Do This:
Heat the oil and the butter in a large stew pot over a medium heat.
Season the beef generously with salt and pepper (more than you think)
When the butter has started to bubble (which should mean its very hot), sauté the meat until a nice warm brown. Do not fully cook. Take out the beef to rest but keep all that brown juice inside the pan.
Add the onion and garlic into the pot and mix with the brown (yummy) juice. Add more butter if needed- in my case it’s always needed 😉
Allow to cook for a few minutes- do not let it burn.
Add the beef stock, bay leaves and tomato paste. Add a little salt and pepper. Stir.
Now add the beef.
Cover, reduce the heat and cook for 2 hours.
Prepare your vegetables. After the 2 hours, throw in the carrots, celery, beans and if your feeling brave; slice a green jalapeno (if you are feeling very, very brave, and want to add some spice, leave in the jalapeno seeds). Cover again, and allow to cook for another hour. Trust me, it’s worth it.
Taste; add some more seasoning if you need to. Then serve over mashed potatoes or rice.
If you make this dish please share it with the world and tag us @primalcooks
We would love to see you version of this beautiful dish, Sleepy Time Tava.