Crock Pot Mushroom Beef

I love cooked mushrooms.  Cooked. I don’t really care for raw mushrooms. I would love to tell you why…..but I don’t know. So much of my life makes no sense at all. Kind of like how I am freaked out by meat on the bone. I saw this recipe by Betty Crocker and I knew I had to give it a shot. I am SO glad I did! It was so delicious. Barry really, REALLY enjoyed it. Okay, so I enjoyed it too. Okay, so I licked my plate when I was done. Gravy should never be wasted. Can I get an “Amen!”?

This recipe popped out at me because it called for a jar of gravy. Normally I make our gravy, but I had a jar of the pre-made stuff downstairs. If I recall, I got it free somewhere around Thanksgiving….and I knew it would stay there until next Thanksgiving or after if I didn’t just go ahead and use it. If you don’t have canned gravy, you can make your own. Getting rid of stuff from the canned good shelves is really exciting. Yes, I’m boring. You’ll also need stew beef, Worcestershire sauce, spicy brown mustard, canned mushrooms, flour, and water.

Place your stew beef in the bottom of your crock. You could use other cuts of beef for this recipe, but I like using stew beef in my slow cooker. Cooking it a long time helps it get nice and tender. This was so good it would melt in your mouth. Sorta like cotton candy, except it was beef.

In a small bowl, mix the gravy, Worcestershire, and mustard. Resist the urge to drink it directly from the container. Think of the beef.

Pour the mixture over the beef. Use a spatula and get every last bit of goodness out of the bowl…..you should always be using a spatula. If you don’t, you’re leaving tons of yumminess in your bowls and jars. God created spatulas – use them.

Drain your mushrooms and pour them over the top of everything else.

Now, stir it all together. Yes I realize we just layered it……for apparently no reason at all since we’re stirring it now – but it was fun wasn’t it?

Put the lid on and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Mine cooked for 8 hours because I wanted maximum tenderness……okay, so you caught me. Mine cooked for 8 hours because I wasn’t at home to check after 6 hours. When I got home, my house smelled like Thanksgiving – except it was 90 degrees outside and I was wearing shorts and a tank top….but other than that, just like Thanksgiving.

See how lovely it looks? I needed a straw……but that would have been a bad influence for Annie. We’re not done yet!

We need to thicken our gravy a bit. Oh yeah, thick gravy. Mix your flour and water with a whisk. Pour it into your beef mixture and stir well. Magic is going to happen.

Cover and cook on high for about twenty minutes. It will seem like eternity because you’ve got the gravy smell up your nose now.

Ahhhh, what a work of art. Beef art (which is somewhat better than some stuff I’ve seen downtown on the side of the road).  I served ours with a side of mashed potatoes. You could pour the mixture over mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, noodles, or rice. Anything goes…..and the beef goes too – it goes bye-bye.