Country French Beef Stew - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 cup dry navy beans or (15 ounce) can white beans, rinsed and drained
4 cups water
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 lbs boneless beef chuck roast, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
3 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup dry red wine
1 (14 ounce) can beef broth
1 cup chopped tomato
2 teaspoons dried thyme, crushed or 2 tablespoons snipped fresh thyme
4 medium carrots, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 medium parsnips, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 -2 teaspoon snipped fresh parsley (optional)

Preparation

If using dry beans, rinse beans.
In a large saucepan combine drained beans and the 4 cups water.
Bring to boiling; reduce heat.
Simmer, uncovered, for 2 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Cover and let stand for 1 hour.
(Or, place beans in water in pan. Cover and let soak in a cool place for 6 to 8 hours or overnight.) Drain and rinse beans.
Place flour and pepper in a plastic bag.
Add beef pieces, a few at a time, shaking to coat.
In a 4- or 6-quart Dutch oven brown half of the beef in 1 tablespoon of the hot oil; remove beef.
Add remaining oil, remaining beef, onion, and garlic to Dutch oven.
Cook until beef is brown and onion is tender.
Drain fat, if necessary.
Stir in wine, scraping until the brown bits are dissolved.
Return all beef to Dutch oven.
Stir in beans, soup stock or broth, tomato, and dried thyme (if using).
Bring to boiling; reduce heat.
Simmer, covered, for 1-1/2 hours.
Add carrots and parsnips.
Return to boiling; reduce heat.
Simmer, covered, for 25 to 30 minutes more or until beef and vegetables are tender.
Stir in fresh thyme (if using).
If desired, garnish with parsley.
*Note:If using canned beans, decrease soup stock or broth to 1 cup.