Aleppan Beef and Vegetable Stew with homemade tomato paste

👨‍🍳 Method

For the homemade tomato paste ✓ Homemade · or skip – back to store-bought

1. 1
   Wash the tomatoes, remove the cores and quarter each tomato.

   KnifeCutting board
2. 2
   Put the tomatoes, the salt and half of the olive oil in a wide pot, cover and cook over medium heat about 20 minutes, until the tomatoes soften and release their liquid.

   StoveWide, shallow pot
3. 3
   Pass the tomatoes and their liquid through a food mill or sieve and return the purée to the pot: the skins and seeds stay behind.

   Food millorFine sieve
4. 4
   Cook uncovered about an hour at a lively simmer, stirring now and then, until the purée reduces by half.

   StoveWooden spoon

   💡The paste burns easily as it dries: stir and scrape the bottom and edges, and once it is thick, don't walk away.
5. 5
   Preheat the oven to 110°C (230°F).

   Oven

   💡Put things in the oven only once it's reached temperature, after the heating light has gone off: an oven that hasn't reached temperature changes baking times, and the bake burns outside or stays underbaked.
6. 6
   Grease a wide baking dish with the rest of the olive oil and pour in the purée in a thin layer. Dry in the oven about 3 hours, stirring and scraping the edges every 30 minutes, until the paste is thick, sticky and brick red.

   OvenBaking sheetSilicone spatula
7. 7
   Let the paste cool.

   Jar

To assemble

1. 8
   Ahead of time, cut the carrot, potatoes and cabbage into chunks.

   KnifeCutting board
2. 9
   Cut the meat into large cubes.

   KnifeCutting board
3. 10
   Heat the oil in a wide pot and brown the meat on all sides. Remove to a plate.

   StoveWide, shallow pot

   💡Brown the meat in batches, without crowding: in a crowded pot it stews in its own juices instead of searing.

   💡What you brown (meat, patties, schnitzel) goes into hot oil: in lukewarm oil it soaks it up and comes out greasy. For onion and garlic that you soften, oil heated over medium or low heat is enough; do not wait for it to smoke.
4. 11
   Add the onion to the oil left in the wide pot and fry 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   StoveWide, shallow pot

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
5. 12
   Add the paprika and cumin and fry 30 seconds, until fragrant.

   Stove

   💡Paprika burns quickly and turns bitter: half a minute in the oil is enough, then move straight on to the next step.
6. 13
   Add the tomato paste and fry 2 minutes, stirring.

   Stove
7. 14
   Add the water and bring to a boil.

   Stove
8. 15
   Return the meat to the pot and season with salt and black pepper.
9. 16
   Turn down to low, cover and simmer 45 minutes, until the meat softens.

   StoveLid

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
10. 17
    Add the carrot, potatoes and cabbage and cook another 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

    Stove