Pot Roast Stew

I had a cheap cut of meat (beef roast) in the freezer and was too lazy to go to the store. What to do? Why, when the weather is cold and snowy -- or rainy, as it may be -- stew is the answer.

I raided all of the aging veggies in my fridge and got to work chopping and tossing items into the slow cooker (electric crock pot)

• About 1-1/2 to 2 lbs of beef (cheaper is better in the case of slow-cooking)
• 2 small yellow onions, cut into eighths, no skins
• 5 small cloves of Garlic, whole with the skins removed
• 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup
• 2 cans of water
• Baby carrots (probably about a cup and a half)
• Celery (about four stalks cut in 2" lengths)
• Dried mushrooms (I used whole woodear, but would generally recommend shredded woodear, black trumpet, portabello or morels in the future)
• 2-3 teaspoons Greek Seasoning (honestly, I just shook a bunch in and didn't measure)
  
• 1-1/2 teaspoons Salt (again, I wasn't too exact with measurements here)
  
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper (I added a few grinds of Australian Mountain peppercorn to great effect, as it adds a more pungent and bitter flavor for this strong stew)
• 4 Russett potatoes, cut into eighths with the skins on

If you want, you can replace the cream of mushroom soup with 2 cans of whole or diced tomatoes, with the juice. Also, a nice addition, which I would have added under other circumstances would be a cup of red wine.

Put everything in the cooker, mix it up a little, with the beef in the center at the bottom, then let the cooker do its work for several hours. I started it on high for about 2 hours, then let it go for another 3-4 on low. The great thing about a slow cooker is that timing is approximate. I did check on it occasionally to mix things up and add a little water, as needed, but it would have been fine without the attention.

If you aren't planning to serve it right away, you will want to cool it down quickly to avoid bacteria growth. I believe Alton Brown's recommendation for things like that is to put the ceramic portion of the pot in a cooler with about 2" of ice in the bottom and either stir the mixture as it cools, or immerse a few bottles of frozen water (3/4 filled so they don't crack when they freeze) into the food itself. That will help the center cool faster. Then, when it has cooled down enough, stick it in the fridge for later enjoyment.

No pictures of this one, as the aroma and flavor far surpass the appearance. But, oh, what comfort... and a great way to clean out the fridge!