Vegetable Beef Soup
From Saska
10/27/2011

In quarter-inch dice:
2 large carrots
4 large celery ribs
1 large sweet onion (Walla Walla, Vidalia, or Mayan Sweet)

2 large or 4 small cloves garlic, minced

1/3 lb low sodium bacon in quarter-inch dice (or fatback, and adjust salt accordingly)

1 lb high-quality grass-fed beef steak, in half-inch cubes (much smaller than stew cut - the easiest way to do this is to freeze the meat for about 20 minutes before cutting) - season the beef with salt and let it sit while you cook the bacon.

3 cups homemade or low-sodium beef stock, held hot

1 14.5 oz can tomato sauce

Some butter

Seasonings you like (I am a big fan of the Trader Joe's Everyday Seasoning which I applied to the beef before cooking it, and I also added some thyme, rosemary, and a bay leaf)
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Over medium heat, brown the bacon until it completely renders out and the bits are crispy. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set it aside. Remove all but about 1 tablespoon of the fat and increase the heat to medium-high.

Add the beef cubes to the pan and stir frequently until they are evenly browned and you're getting some good fond. Pour the beef and the pan juices into a bowl and set aside.

Don't wash that pan! Don't even think about it! Just put it back on the burner, turn the heat down to medium, and add about a tablespoon of butter. When the butter is melted, add the diced vegetables (except the garlic) to the pot. Stir to coat them in butter and then sweat them for about 10 minutes, covered, stirring occasionally. You don't want them to brown, but you should see the celery and carrot colors bloom and the onions will get nice and glossy.

Make a space in the middle of the pan for the garlic. Drop it in to the space you made, spread it evenly on the pan surface, and let it heat for about 30-45 seconds. When the garlic smell gets strong, stir everything together to prevent the garlic from burning.

Still over medium heat, add the hot beef stock to the vegetables and spend some time getting the fond on the bottom of the pan scraped up and incorporated into the liquid. When that's done, add the beef, pan juices, and bacon bits back into the pot. Bring the soup to a boil.

Add the tomato sauce, stir well, and bring it to a boil again. Now add your herbs and bay leaf, cover, turn the heat down to somewhere between low and medium-low - wherever it will just simmer - and leave it be for an hour.

After an hour turn the heat up to medium, add 1 cup of hot water, check your seasonings and adjust, and after it's boiling again, turn the heat back down, cover, and cook for another hour.

After 2 hours it's ready to eat - but you can leave it over low heat for another hour or so. Don't boil it indefinitely or the beef texture will suffer (though the flavor will be fine).

Of course, if you eat such things you could add parsnips, potatoes, or barley to this. I always cook my barley separately in broth and add it fully cooked to the soup - otherwise it throws off the moisture level and seasonings.