Beef And Mushrooms With Smashed Potatoes

Passover is in two weeks and the preparations begin — the annual transformation of the kitchen from its chametz state to its Passover state, the scrubbing and the switching and the inventory and the lists. This will be my last Passover as a working teacher, which means the preparation must happen around lesson plans and grading and the daily requirements of a school that does not pause for Jewish holidays, and the juggling of Passover prep and school prep is a skill I have refined over forty-two years into something approaching choreography: a dance between the secular and the sacred, between the red pen and the wooden spoon, between "The Scarlet Letter" and the Haggadah, and the dance has been my life, and the dance is almost over.

I ordered the brisket — eight pounds, from the kosher butcher in Cedarhurst, the same butcher I've used for thirty years, the same cut, the same order. "Eight pounds, Ruth?" "Eight pounds, Ira." "How many people?" "Fourteen." "That's a lot of brisket for fourteen." "There's no such thing as too much brisket, Ira. You should know this by now." Ira knows this. Ira has been having this conversation with me for thirty years. The conversation is the relationship. The brisket is the bond.

Marvin is in a quiet phase — not agitated, not confused, just quiet. The quiet is different from the early quiet, which was the quiet of a man who had things to say and was choosing not to say them; this quiet is the quiet of a man who has fewer things to say and says them less, the words receding like a tide, leaving a beach that is still recognizable but emptier. He sits. He eats. He watches. He sleeps. The rhythm of his day has simplified to these four activities, and I match my rhythm to his, because matching is caring, and caring is what I do, and the doing is the marriage, the doing is the vow, the doing is the "in sickness and in health" that I said in 1982 and that I am performing, daily, in a kitchen in Oceanside.

The brisket won’t be ready until the Seder, but in the weeks leading up to it — the weeks of scrubbing and switching and crossing things off lists — I need something that feeds the same hunger: a slow, savory beef dish that fills the kitchen with the smell of something sacred being tended to. Beef with mushrooms, over smashed potatoes, is that dish for me. It asks for patience and presence, which are exactly the two things Passover prep — and caregiving — ask of you as well.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat or chuck, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
10 oz cremini or button mushrooms, sliced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 lbs small Yukon Gold potatoes
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup warm milk or cream
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

Season the beef. Pat the beef pieces dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and black pepper on all sides.
Sear the beef. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Working in batches, sear the beef until deeply browned on all sides, about 3—4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Sauté aromatics. Reduce heat to medium. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pot. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Cook the mushrooms. Add the sliced mushrooms to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until they release their liquid and begin to brown, about 6—8 minutes.
Build the braise. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the Worcestershire sauce, thyme, smoked paprika, and beef broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Return the seared beef and any accumulated juices to the pot.
Simmer low and slow. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 50—60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beef is tender and the sauce has thickened. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Boil the potatoes. While the beef simmers, place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold salted water. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until fork-tender, about 18—20 minutes. Drain well.
Smash the potatoes. Return the drained potatoes to the saucepan. Add the butter and warm milk or cream. Using a fork or potato masher, smash the potatoes roughly, leaving some texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve. Spoon the smashed potatoes onto plates or a large serving platter. Ladle the beef and mushroom mixture generously over the top. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Beef And Mushrooms With Smashed Potatoes — The Brisket Is the Bond