Spiced Beef and Onion Stew

I planned this stew since friday and believe it or not there is one person that I think who didn't sleep well last saturday night. It was Pieter's mom. Last saturday night Pieter called her to let her know that I will cook beef stew for sunday's dinner. She was like "huh! hmmm..are you sure?"

Pieter: yes, alma will cook beef and onion stew for our dinner.
Mom: really? did you bought good quality beef for stewing?
Pieter: yes, we did!
Mom: where did she got the idea of cooking stew? does she have a cookbook or her own recipe?
Pieter: yes, she have her own cookbook where she got the recipe.
Mom: ok!

then we went back infront of the tv and tried to relax. After awhile we heard his mobile phone ringing...it was his mom, when he's about to answer she already hang up. So Pieter called her back and asked why.

Pieter: hello, it's me. why did you called?
Mom: tell alma to check the cookbook I gave her for the stew recipe.
Pieter: don't worry she have her own cookbook, I'm sure everything will be fine.
Mom: ok, bye!

The recipe came from my Dutch Cookbook but Pieter told me he's not sure if this is a typical dutch beef stew because of the crème fraîche added. Beef stew require several hours of cooking time to make it correctly. The beef must be browned first and then braised in liquid for several hours in order to become tender. I'm telling you this is the easiest beef stew ever and it worth the wait. Best serve with boiled potatoes or apple and potato mash

spiced beef and onion stew
50 g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
500 g stewing beef, cubed
salt and pepper
3 large onions, quartered
1 tbsp flour
500 ml beef stock
2 bay leaves
3 cloves
2 tbsp vinegar
125 ml crème fraîche

• In a heavy pan, heat the butter on a high heat, add the olive oil to prevent butter from burning. add the beef and cook until brown. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add onion and fry for few more minutes. Add flour, mix well and fry until brown.
• Heat the stock, add the bay leaves, cloves and vinegar and pour over the meat. Cover and simmer gently for about 2 1/2-3 hours or until the beef is tender. Stirring occasionally to make sure it won't stick at the bottom of the pan.
  
• Remove the bay leaves and cloves from the stew and stir in crème fraîche, adjust the seasoning.
• Remove from heat and serve hot with boiled potatoes, rice, or apple and potato mash.
  

3 hours of waiting but it didn't even last for 15 minutes at the dining table. We both loved it. The sauce was so creamy and tasty, and the beef "wow!" sooo tender. We called his mom afterward and she was so surprised with the end result and guess what? although she's not a big fan of onion she's still looking forward to try it too.