Beef with Green Beans (Moschari me Fasolakia) - Greek Recipes

	Beef with Green Beans (Moschari me Fasolakia) Moschari me fasolakia is a Greek beef stew that features green beans. The cooking liquid is fresh tomato puree, with water added as needed. Ingredients (All amounts are flexible and approximate) 2 lb beef stew meat (I discussed the best meat for stew on my other “Beef with…” post.) 2 lb green beans, ends snapped off 2-3 lb tomatoes, grated or pureed in food processor 1 lb onions, chopped (a couple of medium-sized onions) 1 lb potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks (a couple of medium-sized potatoes) 4 cloves garlic, cut into chunks 1 bunch parsley, chopped salt and pepper olive oil Quick Tip You can cut down on spattering by blotting the meat dry before you sear it. And for best flavor, sprinkle the meat generously with salt and pepper after you’ve blotted it. Cook It! Heat 2-3 TB olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven over medium-high. When the oil is hot but not yet smoking, add the meat. It’s important not to crowd the meat, so you may need to do this in two batches, depending on the size of your pot and the amount of meat. Please notice that there is space between the pieces, this way they are seared instead of steamed. Don’t move the pieces around like you’re stir frying, just let them sit and sizzle until they’re well-browned. You’ll know when a piece is ready to turn because it will quit sticking to the pan. Turn each piece just once to brown the other side. I needed to sear the meat in two batches this time, so when the first batch was well-browned on both sides I removed it and put it in a bowl, then added another tablespoon of oil and the second batch of meat. I turned the heat down just a litte bit too. Why? Well, see that brown gunk on the bottom of the pan? That’s the ‘fond’ and it’s going to add a lot of flavor to the sauce. I really really don’t want to burn it and make it bitter. You don’t need super high heat to sear meat, medium high will work just fine, with less mess and less chance of burning. When all the meat is seared on both sides, you can either add the onions to the meat or you can take the meat out and add the onions to the empty pot. In this case because I had so much meat, I decided it would be easier to saute the onions on their own. (See my other Beef with…” post if you want to see what it looks like to saute the onions with the meat.) Stir the onions, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen up the fond. After a few minutes, when the onions have begun to soften, add the garlic and saute, stirring, for a minute or two. Dump the meat back in and add the grated (or pureed) tomatoes. Stir the meat into the tomatoes, and add water to cover the beef if necessary. In the picture below, you can see that the meat is sticking up out of the liquid, so after I took the shot, I added some water to cover the meat. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn the heat down so that the liquid is at a low simmer. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so. Add the potatoes… …and the green beans and parsley. Give the pot a couple of stirs, then add water if necessary to make sure the beans are mostly covered in liquid. Add salt and pepper to taste. Turn the heat up and bring the pot to a low boil. Cover and boil until the potatoes are done and the green beans are soft, about 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so. The green beans will not be bright green, instead they will be deliciously sweet! Serve with bread and feta. Another take on this dish: Greek Beef and Green Bean Stew Comments (38) 38 Comments » Comment by Laurie Constantino Although I make mine a little different (recipe on website), I love braised beans pretty much any way they’re prepared. Before I tried them, I always thought of beans as barely cooked and kind of crispy and thought they’d be awful braised. Not true – they’re incredibly good. I love your step-by-step instructions. Comment by Lulu Hey Laurie! I’m going to check out your recipe right now. Since you say it’s different than mine, perhaps we should have a big argument about it, with lots of arm waving and “aman”s, “ante pali”s and “malista”s. Comment by Lulu Laurie, I’ve updated to include a link to your recipe. It is different enough from mine to be a good additional resource for people. Please consider my arms to have been waved at you plus a little yelling and all that. I was most interested that you confirmed my translation of “moschari” as “beef” rather than “veal”. I said in the comments of my first “moschari me…” post that I’d explain that but then I never got around to it. You explained it well. I still plan to do a general “moschari me…” post and that’s probably where I’ll talk about this, but who knows when that will be? Comment by Peter Lulu, one of my fave dishes but I do wait until I find runner beans (barbounia) to make this dish. Peter’s last blog post..Korean BBQ (Kalbi) Comment by Lulu Peter, ante pali me ta barbounofasoula! 😉 Okay, I’ll try them. Comment by dubaibilly Hi Lulu, I am going to follow this recipe today, but with one minor change (well, I say minor, but it is quite major really), instead of using beef I am going to use lamb, so would that make it agni me fasolakia? Anyway, other than that i am going to follow your recipe exactly so I will let you know how it turns out. Cheers DB dubaibilly’s last blog post..Congratulations! Comment by Lulu Yes, it would, Billy! Bravo! Comment by Paula Visiting your blog has become so nostalgic for me. As with the orzo dish, this dish is also something my Italian mom and grandma made for the family when I was growing up. The beans they used were called Italian beans that were long and snapped/cut into pieces, and this was a dish that we enjoyed in the summer despite the heat in the kitchen! My mom was from the Calabrian region of Italy, which is located in the toe of the boot, and I suspect that the cuisine I grew up with has some Greek roots! So many of these recipes are only memories now as so many of the old country folks have passed on, and you’ve brought alive so much for me. So, although we stem from two different cultures, you are helping me keep my culture flowing for my children. I thank you. Paula’s last blog post.."I Ain’t Got The Blues" Potato Salad Comment by Laurie Constantino Aman! But I’m not arguing because I’m not of the opinion that there’s only one way to make any given dish. I like the variety of different combinations, and I’m not big on rules. And yeah, the mosxari veal/beef issue is one that confuses a lot of people. Glad you’re not one of them! Laurie Constantino’s last blog post..Recipes for Mango and Feta Salad & Pan-Fried Scallops with Mango Salsa (?????? ??? ???? ?????? & ?????? ?? ?????? ??????) Comment by Lore How great you get to serve it with Feta! Lore’s last blog post..Introducing Nutrielle Comment by dubaibilly Well, Lulu, that was fantastic! I forgot to put the parsley in, I added red wine, I used lamb instead of beef and it was magnificent. But then, see, that is what I do when I cook, I steal someone else’s recipe and change it to what I really want! That was a wonderful dish. Thank you. By the way, I also cooked mine in the oven for about 3 and a half hours. It was still great! Cheers DB dubaibilly’s last blog post..What is it? Number 2 in an occasional series… Comment by Cheryl Gosh, that looks so great! I made fasolakia yesterday but it was a version of Maria V’s. I added zucchini because we have so many! Looking at your photo makes me crave the beef! Next time. BTW- I blanched harvested and froze more grape leaves per your method yesterday. Quick & easy! Thanks for such great posts! Cheryl’s last blog post..1st Octopus of the Season Comment by Lulu @ #8 Paula: I’m glad to hear that and you’re very welcome. I have some Greek friends who married Italian soldiers they met during the war, producing blended Greek-Italian families in both countries. I’m sure that’s been happening throughout history. Comment by Lulu @ #10 Hi, Lore, welcome! I’m actually obligated to serve it with feta! Comment by Lulu @11 DB, I’m glad it turned out well. You could do all sorts of variations on the theme and it would still be delicious. Comment by Lulu @12 Cheryl: Yay, you made the grape leaves! Did everybody eat the fasolakia? I seem to recall you saying you were the only veggie lover in the family? Comment by maria verivaki nice work lulu, very genuine greek dish maria verivaki’s last blog post..Zucchini baseball (?????????????????) Comment by Ivy You did a great job Lulu. Although my mum used to cook everything with arni, I prefer all the ladera dishes vegetarian. Ivy’s last blog post..Fat Chefs or Skinny Gourmets? – Round Up Comment by Cheryl Actually, more of us ate it this time than any other. Foti pulled the beans apart because it was fun, Alexandra and Izabella ate the potatoes & carrots and the husband ate one serving. He doesn’t like veggies too much but I’ve explained to him that we are GROWING these veggies to EAT… and I can’t eat them all by myself! He had some more yesterday. Cheryl’s last blog post..1st Octopus of the Season Comment by Lulu @17 Maria: Thanks! Comment by Lulu @19 You know what, Ivy, so do I! Still, this was a nice variation, and what I did was just give myself very little meat so that I was mostly eating beans and potatoes. Comment by Lulu @19 Cheryl, that’s great that they ate them. And pulled them apart. I suppose playing with your veggies is a step on the road to liking them! Comment by e-gold Exchange News I saw your comment on Fred Black’s site about his post (cream rising to the top, and…), and clicked to here just out of curiosity. You have a beautiful site. Almost makes me wish I was into cooking. Comment by FoodJunkie Easy on the beef there sista! FoodJunkie’s last blog post..???????????@ ??????? ?? ???????? ?????????? Comment by Lulu Hi FoodJunkie! I know, I’ve had enough beef to last me for quite a while. Leftovers are in the freezer. Comment by Lulu Hi e-gold! I need to set up a “quick and easy” category for poor souls like you! Comment by stel i am sure my children will love this… i must remember to blot the beef dry too, before browning…great tip Lulu! stel’s last blog post..garbanzos and tuna salad Comment by Lulu Hi Stel! Yes, this seems pretty kid friendly. Comment by manju I was converted to the deliciousness of braised green beans on our first trip (ok, our only trip so far) to Greece. I’ve not tried them with beef before so I’ve bookmarked this to try, too. BTW, we made the second (frozen) batch of keftedes yesterday and I’m happy to report that they came out as light and fragrant as the original batch. I took pictures this time as they came out of the oil. Trouble is, I ate 4 of them during the “photo shoot” — I so love keftedes when they’re hot! manju’s last blog post..Island Fresh: Melons Comment by Lulu @29 Manju, just make sure you don’t burn yourself! Comment by Peter G This is one of my favourite Greek dishes Lulu..I plan on making it later in the week. Thanks for dropping by the other day. Cheers! Peter G’s last blog post..Glorious Greens Comment by Lulu Hi, Peter G., welcome! Comment by chef Great articles here, thanks! Comment by steve tried it..en-joyed it..wonderful meal! only, next time i will double the recipe and invite someone to share++ Comment by QueenofNarnia I LOVE fasolakia and I wanted to make it for my parents’ 25th wedding anniversary because I wanted to make the day special and they didn’t want anything big. I searched for hours looking for a step by step recipe because I have never make fasolakia before. Your recipe was absolutely perfect for the job. I did cut the ingrediants in half because I didn’t want to make so much, but there was still a lot!! Haha. I am definitly going to use your recipe forever because the food was PERFECT. My parents loved it and I cannot wait to make it again! I didn’t use beef stew meat, just regular ground beef and it still worked alright with the recipe. I also used frozen green beans instead of fresh because I thought if they were fresh, they would have cooked down too much. The beans were still deliciously sweet!! Comment by Daphne I just made this tonight and I am so glad I found your recipe! It was great!!!! Just like my mom and yiayia made! Thanks alot!!! Comment by Angelos i add dill (theosmos) as well with the parsley to give it a even deeper complex flavour Trackback by dieta paleo dieta paleo Beef with Green Beans (Moschari me Fasolakia) – Greek Recipes RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI Leave a comment If you want to leave a feedback to this post or to some other user´s comment, simply fill out the form below. Name E-mail URI Your Comment Notify me of followup comments via e-mail
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