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Beef and Barley Stew

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Beef and Barley Stew

In the episode

With our 20 Harvest Watchers killed, we started the stew. Baby bellas and pearl onions got tossed with butter, brown sugar, salt and plenty of pepper (with one airborne toss Kevin did catch), then roasted at 475°F for 15 minutes. Then the confession: we'd cooked the bacon off camera and thrown out the fat the recipe needed. We made a butter-and-flour roux instead, then added beef stock, a little bone broth, and half the wine (Black Box, a family favorite).

Northern Spices, two bay leaves, carrots, garlic, the bacon and the beef all went in, and we wondered how Westfall got Arthas to ship spices from Northrend. It baked at 325°F, and the second half of the wine went in after 90 minutes.

It was worth the wait. This was our first time cooking with barley, and we couldn't believe how good it was. The mushrooms were perfect, the beef was juicy, and every so often you'd get a hit of bacon. Paired with the bread, it was a "really homey meal."

Welcome, weary travelers, to a culinary adventure like no other!

Over the years, this hearty stew has undergone various iterations. During lean times, when the people of Westfall faced threats from bandits and gnoll raiders, ingredients like murloc eyes and buzzard meat found their way into the pot, though we wouldn't recommend it.

Beef and Barley Stew

Westfall Stew

A slow oven-braised beef, barley and red wine stew with bacon, glazed pearl onions and mushrooms. Hearty enough for any Westfall farmhand.

Prep
30 min
Cook
2 hr 45 min
Total
3 hr 15 min
Serves
4

Ingredients

Roasted mushrooms and onions

  • 1 lb baby bella mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups pearl onions, peeled
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • salt and pepper, to taste; be generous with the pepper

Stew

  • 1/2 cup bacon, cooked, drained and broken into pieces
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups beef stock
  • bone broth, a splash
  • 2 cups red wine, divided
  • 1 tsp Northern Spices, see our Northern Spices blend
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 6 carrots, peeled, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled, or until your ancestors say stop
  • 1 cup pearled barley
  • 2 lb stew beef, cut into bite-sized pieces, seasoned with salt
  • water, as needed
  • 1 tbsp fresh parsley, minced, to garnish

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 475°F. Toss the mushrooms and pearl onions with 1 tablespoon of butter, the brown sugar, salt and plenty of pepper. Spread them on a baking sheet and roast for about 15 minutes, until glazed.

  2. Cook the bacon until crisp, drain it, and throw away the fat. Break the bacon into pieces.

  3. In a large oven-safe pot over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Whisk in the flour and cook for about 90 seconds, until it smells toasty.

  4. Whisk in the beef stock, a splash of bone broth and half the wine.

  5. Add the roasted mushrooms and onions, the Northern Spices and the bay leaves.

  6. Add the carrots, garlic, barley and bacon, then the beef. If needed, add water until the liquid comes most of the way up the beef.

  7. Lower the oven to 325°F. Cover the pot and bake for about 90 minutes.

  8. Stir in the rest of the wine, cover, and bake for another 45 minutes to 1 hour.

  9. Remove the bay leaves, taste for salt and pepper, and serve garnished with parsley.

Notes

Use the toasty smell as your cue that the roux is ready, about 90 seconds after the flour goes in. A splash of bone broth adds extra depth. Pairs well with hearty bread (like our Mulgore Spice Bread), red wine and a sharp cheese.

Adapted from World of Warcraft: The Official Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel (Insight Editions, 2016).