If you’ve failed to notice, Dani and I are a couple of pretty hopelessly white people. Dani is Coal-Crackin’ Dutch, descended from the Pennsylvania Deutsch, a large community of German immigrants that settled in the Lehigh Valley and mined the Poconos. (As opposed to Farming Dutch, who settled more towards Lancaster and are perpetually confused with the Amish by tourists and the uninitiated.) I come from WASP stock, perhaps the lamest ethnicity available to an American. We know from good food, but our family recipes are what they are: tasty, hearty, and a little plain. Consequently, our tastes tend to run towards the savory and the milder end of things, and that’s been reflected in our SRSLY recipes. No more! Lets kick it up a notch with this powerfully piquant stew with a southwestern kick. Not for wimps!

SRSLY Spicy Beef Stew, Olé!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. beef chuck pot roast, cubed
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 (14 oz.) cans Mexican diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 (15 oz.) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 3 cups beef broth
• 6 oz. can tomato paste
• 4 oz. can chopped jalapeño peppers, undrained
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. pepper

Standard method: Saute onions and garlic until lightly browned in 1 tablespoon olive oil with all the spices, scrape out the pan carefully and set aside. Sear your beef in the other tablespoon of oil, and add meat, cooked onions and garlic, and all remaining ingredients into your slow cooker and heat on low until everything is cooked, approximately 4 to 6 hours.

SRSLY method: Combine all ingredients in a gallon zip-top bag or other container, freeze. To serve, throw the whole frozen mass in a slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours.