Beef Stew with Sweet Potatoes & Mushrooms

While there’s a little chill in the air, cook up a warm beef stew in the oven with a nice twist – use sweet potatoes.  They caramelize with the other ingredients to make it saucy and the mushrooms and truffle salt add umami.  The perfect dish for a fall /winter evening with friends & family.

Ingredients:

• 1 16 oz pckg Verde Organic, Grass-Fed Stew Meat 
• 8 oz. package of shiitake mushrooms 
• 3 sweet potatoes, diced 
• 2 large carrots, diced 
• 2 medium onions, diced 
• 2 stalks of celery, diced 
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil (or substitute avocado oil)
• 1/4 cup coconut aminos (or substitute soy sauce)
• 2 cups of chicken or beef stock
• Freshly chopped sage & rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon truffle salt (or substitute sea salt or coarse kosher salt)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, to season meat

Directions:

• Preheat over to 250 degrees.
• Season stew meat with salt and pepper.
• In a Dutch oven, brown stew meat in coconut oil on all sides to seal in the juices.
• Remove stew meat from the pan and set aside.
• Sauté onions in the Dutch oven for 5 minutes.
• Add the rest of the diced vegetables and fresh herbs. Cook until vegetables soften, approximately 5-7 minutes.
• Cover with stock and coconut aminos.
• Return beef to Dutch oven.
• Cook for up to 5 hours at 300 degrees (half the time if using an Instapot), stirring every hour or so. Begin to check for doneness at the 4-hour mark. It’s done when the beef can be cut with a fork and blends well into the stew.