Finnish Karelian Stew Two ways to cook

Finnish Karelian Stew or Karjalanpaisti is one recipe exception to my quick cooking in the kitchen. This needs time to be tender and it is really good when it is tender and melts in the mouth without the need to chew the meat hard.

I still remember the very first time I tasted this Finnish Karelian Stew. It was during my very first Christmas eve in Finland. I was in my aunts husbands parents place. As the traditional Finnish family and everyone is a Finn except me and my two aunties who by the way that time a student, I thought there wasn’t any rice at all. To my surprise, there was and there was the Ham and the Finnish Karelian Stew!

Then I got aware of that menu every time there is in the school restaurant menu. Few years after, when I got married to a Finn too, he taught me how to make it. Every Christmas, yes I am talking about Christmas now and it is just August 🙂 Anyway, every Christmas I prepare this stew but not using our electric oven. I use our fireplace oven.

The good thing about this stew is that, the hard work is only the beginning, then you just have to let it cook by itself. So even though it takes time, you can leave the kitchen and do some other things in between. Still perfect option if there is kids in the family. There is time to play with them in between.

Below are two ways to cook the Finnish Karelian stew.

Ingredients:

400g Karelian stew meat (mixed beef and pork)
2 pcs onion (peeled and sliced)
4 cloves garlic (crushed)
10pcs black pepper
5 carrots (peeled and sliced not to small)
1 beef stock cubes
oil
Water

Procedure using oven:

Preheat the oven at 200 degrees C
In a medium heat pan, saute onion until brown
Add the crushed garlic
Add the meat until it turns brown
Transfer to a pot that is safe for oven use
Add the rest of the ingredients
Add water that covers all the meat
Cover the pot and place in the oven for 2 1/2 – 3 hrs
Serve with potato and lingon berry jam

If you don’t want to use the oven and wants to cook it faster. It is also possible to cook it just in the pan. I have tried that many times when I wanted to have the Karelian stew but do not have long hours to cook.

Procedure using just the pan:

In a medium heat pan, saute onion until brown
Add the crushed garlic
Add the meat until it turns brown
Then next add the carrots and black pepper
Add water that just covers the meat and put the beef stock cubes.
Cover and let it boil.
Lower the heat
Simmer for 1 1/2 hours on low heat.

If you try to make this recipe, comment below. Thank you for reading!