Greek recipe

Beef Stifado

Name: Beef Stifado
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Greek cuisine
Ingredients: 1.5 kg beef chuck, cut into 50 mm pieces; 900 g pearl onions or small shallots, peeled; 90 ml extra-virgin olive oil, divided; 15 g garlic, minced; 40 g tomato paste; 400 g canned chopped tomatoes; 300 ml dry red wine; 60 ml red-wine vinegar; 500 ml unsalted beef stock; 1 cinnamon stick; 5 whole cloves; 6 allspice berries; 2 bay leaves; 18 g fine salt, divided; 4 g black pepper

Beef is browned and slowly braised with many small onions, tomato, red wine, vinegar, cinnamon, cloves and allspice until spoon-tender in a glossy sweet-savory sauce.

Greek braised-meat tradition

Prep: 30 min
Cook: 2 hr 30 min
Total: 3 hr
Servings: 6

Greek beef stifado with pearl onions in glossy red-wine tomato sauce — **Real finished-dish photograph**Photograph by AnagoriaSource page · Original file · CC BY-SA 4.0Cropped, resized, and compressed by Recipe Nest Vault.

Ingredients

1.5 kg
beef chuck, cut into 50 mm pieces
900 g
pearl onions or small shallots, peeled
90 ml
extra-virgin olive oil, divided
15 g
garlic, minced
40 g
tomato paste
400 g
canned chopped tomatoes
300 ml
dry red wine
60 ml
red-wine vinegar
500 ml
unsalted beef stock
1
cinnamon stick
5
whole cloves
6
allspice berries
2
bay leaves
18 g
fine salt, divided
4 g
black pepper

Method

01
Dry and season the beef
Pat the beef completely dry and season with 10 g salt and all the black pepper. Leave uncovered for 15 minutes while the pot heats.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
02
Brown the beef in batches
Heat 50 ml olive oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown the beef in 3 batches for 8–10 minutes per batch, turning to color several faces, then transfer to a tray.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
03
Brown the small onions
Add the remaining 40 ml olive oil and the peeled onions. Cook for 8 minutes, rolling them occasionally, until they pick up golden patches but remain whole; transfer half to a bowl.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
04
Build the aromatic tomato base
Add garlic and tomato paste to the onions in the pot and cook for 1 minute. Add the wine and vinegar, scrape up the fond and boil for 5 minutes to reduce by about one-third.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
05
Start the slow braise
Return the beef and its juices. Add chopped tomatoes, stock, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, bay leaves and 5 g salt. Bring just to a simmer, cover and cook over very low heat for 90 minutes.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
06
Add the reserved onions late
Add the reserved browned onions after 90 minutes. Cover again and simmer for 35–45 minutes until the beef yields easily to a spoon and the late-added onions are tender but intact.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
07
Reduce the sauce uncovered
Remove the cinnamon stick, cloves, allspice and bay leaves. Simmer uncovered for 10–15 minutes until the sauce turns glossy and coats the beef instead of pooling thinly.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
08
Rest and correct seasoning
Rest off the heat for 15 minutes. Taste the sauce and add up to the remaining 3 g salt if needed, then serve with bread, potatoes or orzo.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph

Practical notes

Tips

Keep beans and braises at a steady gentle simmer so their centres soften before the liquid reduces too far.
Finish acidity and salt near the end of cooking, especially after olives, feta, stock or preserved ingredients have contributed seasoning.

Common mistakes

Hard boiling can split beans, tighten meat and reduce the sauce before the centre is tender.
Adding cold liquid late in cooking interrupts the simmer and lengthens the time needed for beans or meat to soften.

Substitutions

Use a similar dried bean of comparable size when the named Greek bean is unavailable and cook to tenderness rather than by the clock.
Unsalted stock can replace part of the water in savoury soups and stews; season only after it has reduced.

Storage

Cool leftovers promptly and refrigerate within 2 hours at 0–4°C for up to 3 days. Reheat only the portion needed until piping hot throughout.

Cultural context

Stifado is a Greek family of slow braises recognizable by its generous quantity of small onions and warm spices. Beef is common today, while rabbit and other meats also have long regional traditions.

Sources and photo credit

This standardized method was independently rewritten after cross-checking the references below. Recipe Nest Vault does not claim that the credited photographer cooked from this exact version.

Recipe references

20240503 Stifado Restaurant MeGusto anagoria — Photograph by Anagoria; CC BY-SA 4.0.

Step illustrations: Original illustrations created by Recipe Nest Vault with OpenAI image_gen.

Back to Greek recipes

Beef Stifado

Ingredients

Method

Dry and season the beef

Brown the beef in batches

Brown the small onions

Build the aromatic tomato base

Start the slow braise

Add the reserved onions late

Reduce the sauce uncovered

Rest and correct seasoning

Sources and photo credit

Recipe references

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