Nothing warms us up better than comfort food. From oven made meals to stews and casseroles, there are many options to choose from. So, how do we plan these meals?

As the cold weather is settling in, we often crave comfort food to warm us up, but we also need to have quick and easy go-to meals for those busy weeknights. Can we tackle both aspects? Absolutely! Let’s look at beef inside round steak and meat for stews.

What is beef inside round steak?
Beef inside round steak is the cut from the rear portion of a cow’s hindquarters. It is a lean and tough cut that benefits from marinating, tenderizing with a mallet, and slicing thinly to tender the meat and to give it some extra flavour. The good news is that this cut is quite versatile. You can make ground beef, roasts, oven grilled steaks, deli meat, stir-fries, fajitas, kebabs, and so much more.

The best way to cook round steak is with moisture, which makes this cut of meat much more tender – this includes slow cooking and braising. Here’s an important tip: when marinating, make sure to include a strong acid, such as lemon or lime juice, any type of vinegar, or red wine. This will enhance the tenderness and give the meat a nice, rounded flavour. It’s important to let this cut of meat marinate for at least an hour.

Stew
When we mention cold weather and food, is there anything better than stews? Not really! On a cold Fall or Winter night, a warm and hearty bowlful of stew is the best food you can have! Stew recipes are also very versatile and you can choose from beef, pork, lamb or even chicken stew recipes. You can use your slow cooker to make a classic beef stew; you can treat your family to a special dinner by preparing a beef Burgundy – French style; or give yourself some time to explore “stews around the world”.

Enjoy!