Cocoa Tinged Beef Stew with Root Vegetables

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This stew was so good and not that different than other beef stews I grew up eating and making. I try to eat clean and healthy, so the only difference is I substituted oat flour for the white and eliminated the butter and just used a canola oil to brown the beef in. I also put it altogether and put it in the oven for a few hours to finish cooking. My family ate the entire pot! It was very delicious and the cocoa really didn't have any noticeable flavor, it just enhanced it. It's going in my keeper file. YUM!

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The flavor of this stew was terrific and completely different than a beef burgundy. While I adore that winey flavored gravy, the cocoa lent this one a real earthy, deep flavor. Completely different, but just as wonderful. Will definitely make this one again.

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This one is going in my repetoire. I followed the directions almost exactly - made two small changes. First, I only sliced half of the mushrooms and added them in the early step as the recipe called for, then when I added the pearl onions I added the rest of the mushrooms, quartered (we like mushrooms and wanted to know they were in there. The other change was that I forgot to put the parsley in at the end.
We didn't notice the cocoa at all, but the sauce was very rich and had depth of flavor - I imagine the cocoa contributed to that.
It's yummy - first class stew!

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I agree with the person who said it was too much cocoa and that it made the stew bitter. I love flavor and tasted the mushrooms after they were cooked with the onions. It was super delicious. If I never added the cocoa or even just used MAYBE only 1 tbsp instead of the two it would've tasted a LOT better. I was so excited to try this recipe and for how long I slaved in the kitchen to make it, I was expecting 5 star stew. Nice try Emeril.

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This is great stuff! Well worth the time and effort! But not enough to have leftovers for the the next day..was so delicious! Thanks Emeril..you da man!!

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This is a labor of love well worth it! Can anyone tell me where to get that pot?

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The cocoa powder makes all the difference. It reminded me of Cincinnati style chili which also adds cocoa and cinnimon. Be sure to use a good cocoa powder and not ground unsweetened baking chocolate or it will be very bitter. But I guess a touch of sugar could remedy that. Also, I don't think I cook anything but my morning coffee without using Essence and usually go a little heavy on it. I used a sirloin tip roast cut into 1 inch cubes, added baby lima beans and served this over rice with southern style biscuits on the side. Yum.

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This stew is awesome - the ingredients give it a twist from most stews - it's a favorite of ours and perfect for autumn eats.

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In Feb. '09 was looking for a new recipe for beef stew that had a thick, rich sauce and found this one. I followed the recipe, except for the pearl onions, and it turned out fantastic. I have no idea what the other reviewers had problems with or why some fear adding the cocoa. It was incredibly delicious, and I have made this amazing stew 3 more times since then. I used Ghirardelli cocoa, and the cocoa made the sauce very rich and tasteful! My boyfriend (who loves comfort foods thought this was the best beef stew he ever tasted. He liked it even better leftover the following day. I made Emeril's ESSENCE as instructed, which provided me with more than this recipe requires, and we use it to flavor steaks or chicken that we grill. It is an amazing seasoning to have on hand. Thanks Emeril for your great recipe!!!

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The required 2 Tbsp of cocoa powder made all of the ingredients very bitter. Perhaps one should begin with 1 tsp or 2 tsp of the cocoa powder and titrate up to taste. This is the FIRST Emeril recipe that I took at face value and used the ingredients 'as given'. Never again - "You can always add, but you can't take away."