Recipe: Crock Pot Moroccan Sweet Potato and Beef Stew

Looking for another beef stew recipe?  Need a quick and healthy recipe? Well ... I have a delicious one for you.  Moroccan Sweet Potato and Beef Stew with a hint of heat and spice... is a perfect alternative to the hum drum beef stew. 

No oil is necessary... no browning of the meat before putting it in the crock pot... nope... just pop in the ingredients.. turn it to low... and 8 hours later... you have a meal.

Making it in a crock pot makes it so easy... it takes literally minutes to put together... and no work whatsoever... you don't even need to stir it... just lift the lid and serve it.

This recipe is all over... so it was difficult to know it's origin.. it seems it is a Moroccan staple much like our beef stew recipes here in the US.  I looked over all the recipes and kept mine simple... I'm glad I did.. it was delicious...

TIPS

When you look over  the ingredient list.... and see cinnamon.. don't be tempted to leave it out.. it adds a perfect balance to the other ingredients... it doesn't end up being the dominant flavor.. in fact.. really none of the spices end up the star... this truly is a blend of flavors.

I was tempted... big time... to add 2 cans of diced tomatoes instead of one.... I just didn't think there would be enough for the entire pot.... but I resisted... when the stew was finished cooking.. it was perfect... so my advice.. stick to the recipe.

I blended the spices and flour in a bowl before putting them in the crock pot.. the best way to do that is using a wire whisk.. it evenly distributes them.

I use lean stew meat... the crock pot slow cooking makes it extremely tender.. no need for the additional fat in fatty cuts of meat.

As I mentioned in the beginning.. no browning of the meat is necessary...

I used golden raisins.... originally I used a 1/4 cup of raisins.. but they get kind of lost in the stew... so I upped the quantity....

The recipe calls for one can of diced tomatoes with onion and garlic.  As luck would have it my local store didn't have that variety... so I used a can of Hunts Fire Roasted Garlic Diced Tomatoes.  I added 1 teaspoon of onion powder to compensate for the change.

The quantity of spices seems like a lot... especially the cayenne... but the long slow cooking dulls the heat.... these quantities listed produced a tiny zip... no more than you would get from a taco or mild chili... so be not afraid!

The salt is listed in a range... some people like salt... some don't... I actually added a little more than 1/2 a teaspoon and it seemed right for us.. but I don't usually add a lot of salt to my cooking... I wouldn't recommend leaving it totally out... but using the amount listed definitely does NOT make a salty dish.

You can serve this as is... or with rice or couscous.

I hope you try this wonderful stew!

Recipe:  Crock Pot Moroccan Sweet Potato and Beef Stew

All you need:

About 2 1/2 pounds lean beef stew meat

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 can diced tomatoes with onion and garlic *See TIPS

1/2 cup golden raisins

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 - 1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne (ground red pepper)

3 tablespoons flour

Cooked rice for serving (optional)

All you need to do:

In a small bowl, mix the cinnamon, cumin, salt, cayenne and flour.  Mix with a wire whisk until completely blended.

Place meat, sweet potatoes and raisins in the pot and then dump the spice mixture into the crock pot.

Toss to evenly coat everything with the spice mixture.  Add the canned tomatoes and give it a quick stir. 

Cover and set the crock pot on low for 8 hours.  Stir before serving.

Optional:  Serve over rice.