After considering what I do without thinking, I decided to pay attention to what I was doing and write it down. Here's my recipe. Try it if you want, but don't change anything until you've tried it unmolested. After that, let your conscience be your guide.
Vegetable
Beef Soup ( Did you notice I used the bold font?)
Ingredients:
Three to four pounds of beef, cut to small bite size pieces. Trim any excess fat and connective tissue.
One large onion
One large potato
One 14.5 oz can of diced
tomatoes
One 14.5 oz can of whole
kernel corn
One 14.5 oz can of cut
green beans
One 14.5 oz can of pinto
beans
One 8 oz can of diced
carrots.
Dice the onions and potatoes. Finely dice ¼ cup of the potatoes and separate.
In a 12 quart stock pot, place two tablespoons of cooking oil and heat to where the oil is almost smoking.
Place the beef and allow it to sear, turning often. This takes about five minutes.
Add the onions and cook until the meat is browned.
Add the can of diced tomatoes. Do not drain.
Bring to a simmer and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the pinto beans, drained green beans, drained corn and drained carrots. This is an important step. Only the diced tomatoes and pinto beans should not be drained.
Bring to a simmer and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add 18 cups of water and the ¼ cup of finely diced potatoes.
Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer.
Simmer for one hour and then taste for seasoning. Add more salt if necessary.
Add the remainder of the potatoes and allow the soup to simmer until the potatoes are tender.
If you can stand it, allow the soup to cool, place it in the refrigerator and heat servings the following day. This is best. The seasoning soaks into the meat and potatoes.
If not, allow the soup to cool until it can be skimmed. Skim, serve and enjoy.
How many servings? I don’t know; I never measured the final result.
Although I don’t recommend it, you can substitute ground beef. If used, follow the instructions until the diced tomatoes are added. Drain the meat before this step and continue to follow the recipe.
I know there's a lot of canned vegetable in this recipe. I've tried fresh and don't like the results. If you even think about using Veg-All, I'll find you and kill you. That stuff ruins a good soup.
Another thing: Other than the pinto beans, I prefer Del-Monte canned vegetables. To me, they taste better. As far as the pinto beans, I like Ranch Style brand pintos.
Finally: I prefer the diced tomatoes with garlic and onions. It really doesn't make a huge difference, but I'm a perfectionist with my soup.
I just thought of something else: Somebody once asked why I didn't put Lima beans in the soup. My immediate reaction was to vomit. I had to stay in bed for a week.
lLOL...I put in Lima beans instead of pinto. Okay, pintos are vomit inducing to me. I also put in celery finely diced. And, the carrots are fresh ones.
ReplyDeleteI made this all the time and my three young children refused to eat the meat, saying they could not swallow it after chewing for a long time. I was so frustrated and required them to eat the tiny little bit I put in their bowls.
One day, I did not have the beef I thought I did. So, I just used the ground round. My children were so happy that I never used beef again. I also used the juice from the vegetables in place of some of the water. Yes, I used water from lima beans. Sorry.
This is better the second day, but we ate it the first day and several days after.
Soup freezes well, but it usually doesn't last long enough to be frozen.
DeleteI started with celery. I tried other ingredients, but finally settled on my recipe.
DeleteOne thing I do differently, I add tomato sauce and a cup of "hot and spicy V8". Now you may go vomit. I'll be here when you get back.
ReplyDeletenot really.
That's what's so good about vegetable beef soup. After experimenting, the right ingredients are finally found.
DeleteI'm curious. I never had a recipe. I just decided one day to prepare a soup. After too many failed experiments, I found what I liked and most important: what my my wife likes.
ReplyDeleteDid you start with a recipe, or with a determination to try something new?
And another thing: I, once, mentioned how much I liked cooking, when my grandfather was present. He looked at me like I'd put on a pink evening gown and blew kisses at the boys.
ReplyDeleteHe came from a different time.
I'm a celery guy, and like Rotel for the diced tomatoes. I even like a little pearl barley sometimes.
ReplyDeleteI tried small noodles one time. I liked it, but my wife, who is more of a purist than I am, asked I didn't change the recipe in the future. She likes it just like it is, and warms my heart when she gets a big smile after I start preparing soup.
DeleteOoooh. Sounds yummy. We are big soup enthusiasts, and up here the weather is turning cool, which always seems to heighten the pleasure of a good dish of soup.
ReplyDeleteI have a beef soup recipe that I call my Old Williamsburg Beef Soup because I modified it from a recipe purportedly popular in Williamsburg VA, back in the mid-late 1700s. Not only do we find it delicious, it's fun to connect to history in a real way.
Soup is food for the soul.
DeleteThat is exactly what I put in soup except I do not use pinto beans but love lima beans. Pinto beans make me retch! I always used soup meat or a roast or steak, diced. My children hated the meat and said they could not swallow the very tender meat. One day, I did not have the soup meat I thought I did. I browned ground chuck, and put it in the soup. The children loved it, so I made it with ground chuck forever after that. Oh, I do use my home-canned tomatoes and fresh carrots. Now, I need to make soup!
ReplyDelete