This Beef Stew is an AIP, paleo and nightshade free adaptation of a classic dish served in Trinidad called Stew Beef. In this version, beef is marinaded in cilantro, lime, chives and thyme, browned in coconut sugar and cooked alongside carrots and grain-free dumplings.
I’m participating in the 2021 Black History Virtual Potluck. A collaborative menu of recipes contributed by 40+black bloggers from around the globe in honor of Black History Month. I’m also sharing another participant’s recipe at the end of this post.
This post contains affiliate links.
Stewed Beef or stew beef as we call it in Trinidad, was a staple dish growing up. Unlike in beef stews common in North America, many Caribbean stewed dishes involve caramelizing the meat in sugar to give it both the deep brown colour and depth of flavor. This Trinidadian- inspired Beef Stew is an adaption of my family’s recipe for stew beef.
As with most prepared meats, the beef is marinaded in a medley of fresh herbs and spices also known as green seasoning. In this recipe, the seasoning consists of onions, garlic, fresh thyme, cilantro and chives, lime juice and water. Overnight is best, but in a pinch at least 45 minutes will do. This both tenderizes the meat and really amps up the flavor profile. I typically make a big batch (double the recipe) of green seasoning and store it in different glass containers in the freezer so that I have it on hand. It’s also a great base for soups and stir frys, or for quick AIP veggie sautés and breakfasts.
Here are the main ingredients in this Trinidadian Stew Beef
- green seasoning – fresh thyme, cilantro, chives, lime, yellow onion and garlic to make this
- coconut oil
- 1 lb stewing beef
- coconut sugar – this is the base of the stew and the meat caramelizes in it.
- carrots
- additive free full fat coconut milk
- dumplings – cassava flour, coconut flour and sea salt. These are optional (but highly recommended) and can be replaced with cubed rutabaga or white sweet potatoes.
Instructions
To begin, add onion, garlic, thyme, cilantro, lime, chives and water to a food processor and pulse until combined into a relatively smooth paste. Generously sprinkle beef with salt and marinade in 3/4 cup of the green seasoning overnight or for at least 45 minutes. Once ready, heat a large cast iron or stock pot with coconut oil on medium-high heat. Add coconut sugar and use a spoon with a long handle to stir and incorporate with coconut oil. Allow sugar to heat until it begins to melt, bubble and brown. It’s a good idea to keep your stove fan on because things will get smoky. Also keep your seasoned meat handy.
Once the sugar has turned medium-dark brown, it’s time to add in your beef. Add the beef, reserving most of the juices/seasoning in the bowl to add to the dish later on. Stir beef continuously into the caramelized sugar so that it’s fully coated (about one minute). Reduce heat to medium and cover pot to allow meat to release water (3-5 minutes). Add chopped carrots, remaining reserved seasoning from meat, salt, water and coconut milk to pot. Bring to a low boil, reduce heat further to low and cover pot. Allow to cook 40 minutes until beef is tender. Meanwhile, make dumplings by combining coconut and cassava flour with salt and water and rolling into small balls or tapered dumplings. Add to pot after 40 minutes and stir to submerge in liquid. Cook 5 minutes more.
Tips and Tricks
I was once intimidated by this dish because of the process of browning the sugar on high heat. It’s not complicated, but does requires precise timing. Here are a few helpful tips:
- Use a pot that is large enough so that all the meat can lay flat. Otherwise, the meat will not brown sufficiently when you pour it into the caramelized sugar.
- Have all your ingredients laid out and ready to go (especially the seasoned meat) so that you can easily reach for it once the sugar has browned.
- Turn on your stove fan on to avoid your smoke alarm from going off as things do get smoky.
- Use a spoon with a long handle to prevent burning yourself when browning the sugar and adding the seasoned meat.
Here is another delicious recipe from Candace Boyd Wylie, another participant in the Black History Month Virtual Potluck. This recipe for Sweet & Tangy Collards | FoodLoveTog is super delicious and a great accompaniment to the stew here. It can be modified to be AIP by substituting coconut sugar, olive oil and omitting pepper.
If you liked this Trinidadian-inspired Beef Stew try these other AIP Caribbean-inspired recipes:
- AIP Beef Patties
- Caribbean-inspired Beef Soup
- AIP Trinidadian Callaloo
- AIP Salted Cod in Coconut Milk
If you try this Trinidadian-inspired Beef Stew I would love if you gave it a star rating and short review. Be sure to snap a picture of the finished product and share it with me on Instagram by tagging @healmedelicious
PrintTrinidadian Beef Stew (AIP, paleo, nightshade free)
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
This Trinidadian Beef Stew is an AIP and paleo adaptation of a classic dish served in Trinidad called Stew Beef. In this version, beef is marinaded in cilantro, lime, chives and thyme, browned in coconut sugar and cooked alongside carrots and grain-free dumplings.
Ingredients
Green seasoning
- 1 cup fresh cilantro (leaves and stems)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1/4 cup chives, chopped
- 2 TBSP fresh thyme
- 2 TBSP fresh lime juice
- 1/4 cup water
Beef
- 3/4 cup green seasoning
- 1 lb stewing beef
- 2 TBSP coconut oil
- 2 TBSP coconut sugar
- 2 cups carrots cut into 1/2 inch long pieces
- 3/4 cup full fat, additive free coconut milk
- 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 tsp sea salt (plus more for seasoning)
Dumplings (optional)
- 1/2 cup cassava flour
- 2 TBSP coconut flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
Green Seasoning
- Add cilantro, garlic, onion, chives, thyme, lime juice and water to a food processor and pulse until combined into a relatively smooth paste.
Stew
- Place beef in a large glass bowl and sprinkle generously with salt. Add 3/4 cup green seasoning to bowl and combine with meat. Allow to marinade overnight or for at least 45 minutes.
- Once meat is ready, heat a large cast iron or stock pot with coconut oil on medium-high heat.
- Add coconut sugar and use a spoon with a long handle to stir and incorporate with coconut oil. Allow sugar to heat until it begins to melt, bubble and brown. It’s a good idea to keep your stove fan on because things will get smoky. Keep your seasoned meat handy.
- Once the sugar has turned medium-dark brown, it’s time to add in your seasoned beef. Add the beef, reserving most of the juices/seasoning in the bowl to add to the dish later on. Stir beef continuously into the caramelized sugar so that it’s fully coated (about one minute).
- Reduce heat to medium and cover pot to allow meat to release water (3-5 minutes).
- Add chopped carrots, remaining reserved seasoning from meat, salt, coconut milk and water to pot. Bring to a low boil, reduce heat to low and cover pot. Allow to cook 40 minutes until beef is tender.
- Meanwhile, make dumplings by combining cassava and coconut flour with salt and water and rolling into small balls or tapered dumplings.
- After 35-40 minutes, add dumplings to pot and gently stir to submerge in liquid. Cook 5-10 minutes more or until beef is sufficiently tender.
- Taste for salt and adjust as necessary. Serve warm.
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Soups + Stews
Cathy
I think my coconut sugar burned before it melted. It was still visibly granulated and turned a very dark brown in the oil. The finished dish is actually still quite good with a tanic flavor reminiscent of coffee and no hint of sweetness. Should I try a lower temperature with the sugar next time?
Taylor
So delicious. Only issue I had is that the dumplings took way longer to cook than the recipe stated. Were like jelly/goo inside so cooked them for a half hour or so. They were still very doughey but decent. But they still had this grainy texture, almost like sand was in them. Any ideas of how to fix this? I followed the ingredients exactly.
Nicole Charles
Hi Taylor, were they gummy or dry/sandy? You seemed to have cooked them for quite a long time, which leads me to believe they might be disintegrating.
Winter
Unfortunately, this didn’t work out for us. The liquid of the stew reminded me of a split buttercream? Very thick and mottled. The dumplings turned into a glob of mush, and we couldn’t tell if they were over or undercooked. The carrots and meat weren’t too bad, but not quite something I’d crave. There’s definitely a chance I missed something or messed up somewhere. I’d encourage anyone considering making this to still give it a go, though, as a lot of others seemed to have found success.
I was really hoping this would work out, as I’ve missed having meals like beef stew lately.
Susanne Brunette
I made this stew for a big family gathering and was a huge success. It’s truly the most flavourful stew I have ever had.
Midanna
I’ve made this recipe on the stove several times and love it! I recently bought an instant pot and would love to try it in there. How do I tweak the instructions for the instant pot? Is it best to slow cook or pressure cook? Thank you, love your recipes!!
Nicole Charles
Hi Midanna, this recipe can’t be made in the Instant Pot – browning the sugar on its own is necessary. If you wanted to do that first on sauté and then add in the other ingredients you can.
Leah
This was, by far, one of the best recipes I have had recently. I have been on a super strict elimination diet for the past week and I am SO thankfully for having a culinary background because it has NOT been easy to get creative when so much food has been removed from the diet. I stumbled across this recipe yesterday and made it (modified) last night. Even without the sugar, lime, or garlic… this was OUTSTANDING! I am making the sauce again tonight to pour over chicken – like a chimichurri. And those little dumplings… they are basically safe gnocchi… I will be making those for EVERYTHING. This recipe is so spectacular. I can’t wait to get through this phase and get a chance to try it in ALL its glory. Thank you so much for sharing it! <3 LOVE LOVE LOVE!
Hajni
I really enjoyed this recipe. All the instructions were straightforward, easy to follow. I have no clue how the dish suppose to taste, but it turned out delicious. It is so different from our usual method, but I am very happy that I tried it. Thanks for the inspiration.
ahs
This beef stew was such a truly amazing way to have beef after a near-year of eating very little! The green sauce! The carrots! The dumplings! Deeply satisfying and so layered + satiating and while bright. I spooned the leftovers (while still cold) as filling in Nicole’s recipe for stuffed sweet potato cakes: https://healmedelicious.com/stuffed-sweet-potato-cakes/, baked them, and dipped them in the leftover green sauce. I cannot wait to make this stew recipe exactly as-is again! Perfect and appreciated! Thank you, Nicole!
Camille Mahar
So easy to make and prep for dinner! Will be a new staple in our house.
Curious what to do with the remaining green sauce since only 3/4cp is used?
Nicole Charles
So glad you enjoyed, Camille. Thanks for leaving a review. You can use it to season other meats and fish like this –> https://healmedelicious.com/caribbean-fish-and-chips-with-tamarind-sauce/ SO good!
Lindsey Hamilton
My man and I are about 50 days into AIP and have tried dozens of recipes so far. This cozy, comforting stew is definitely top 3 favorites. It is urgently flavorful, complex, and delicious. I always double it and add 2 white sweet potatoes. Tonight, I am cutting the dumplings to gave AIP cornbread on the side. Thank you for this adapted family recipe, Queen!
Kimberly
This stew was a perfect meal for a cool fall/winter night. The flavors were complex and fit so well together. I opted for doing the white sweet potato instead of the dumplings just to make it fit my time/prep schedule better. It worked great! On AIP I missed my family’s beef stew recipe – based in a tomato sauce – this was a perfect substitute. I was skeptical of the coconut milk, but you’d never guess it was in there. So good! Will be adding this to my regular rotation of meals.
Thea Racelis
This stew was everything! Made it with collard greens and some fried plantains and it was all Caribbean goodness.My only suggestion is to double the recipe when you make it because you gonna want more!
Nicole Charles
I agree 🙂 Thanks Rhea!
Faith
I love this dish so much—from the green seasoning, to the browning process, to the dumplings. This was what I needed. Eating only a protein and veggies for the past 6 months three times a day was starting to wear on me. Thank you, Nichole 🙂
For those who may have issues with your dumplings, I suggest that you lay the dumplings in the sauce and then put the lid back on for the last 10 minutes that Nichole recommends. Wait to fully submerge the dumplings in the sauce after the 10 min are up so that they won’t become mush.
Nicole Charles
Thank you for your review! I’m so happy that you enjoyed the stew
Nanette
This was something I thought sounded very tasty and would be different from the typical beef stew I grew up with. It did not disappoint! It was very good even though I don’t think I executed the burnt sugar right and the dumplings became instant glob when I dropped them in the stew :). Any advice as to what I can do differently? I think I should have added some flour to the dumplings, they were very soft. I like a challenge in the kitchen and am not giving up. I will be making this again. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Julia
Hi Nicole, thanks for your recipes, i love them always! I made this many times and it’s always a treat. The dumplings aren’t optional though, i love them way too much 😉
Nicole Charles
hehehe 🙂 I gotta agree with ya there!
Prem
Was super excited to cook this and it turned out to be such a treat! DO NOT skip on the dumplings!! #newGoToDish
Lydia
I made this tonight but swapped the lime juice for lemon, cut out garlic and onions to make it Low-FODMAP, and used mostly dried herbs instead of fresh. It was still so, so good! Possibly the best stew I’ve ever made.
Tabitha
I made this tonight and love it. I did marinate over night and I made half the dumplings. I really love this recipe. Thank you for sharing.
Jodie
I made this tonight for my family and we all loved it. I can’t wait to make this again very soon.
Randi Reshef
Love this idea! I couldn’t find cassava flour. Is there something else I can use instead to make the dumplings? I have coconut flour. Thanks ?
Nicole Charles
Hi Randi, not sure where you’re located but you can typically find this online. I’ve included some affiliate links in the recipe notes. It won’t work with coconut alone, but you could try a blend of tapioca and coconut. I haven’t tried myself so no guarantees.