Beef and Vegetable Soup

My mom makes amazing beef vegetable soup. It cooks for hours and hours and involves soup bones and dumplings and tons of work. I was looking for the same taste without the time commitment when I came across this recipe.

Adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Prep and Cook Time: about 60 minutes
Makes 6 servings

1 lb sirloin tip steak, trimmed of fat and cut into 1/2" pieces
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 lb mushrooms, quartered
1 lrg onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 C)
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp)
1/2 C red wine
4 C beef broth (low sodium)
1 3/4 C chicken broth (low sodium)
4 medium carrots, cut int 1/2" pieces (about 2 C)
2 medium ribs celery, cut into 1/2" pices (about 3/4 C)
1 C frozen peas, thawed
1 C frozen corn, thawed
about 1 C home style extra-wide egg noodles, uncooked
3 bay leaves
1 Tbsp unflavored gelatin (powdered)
1/2 C cold water
2 tsp dried parsley leaves

Combine beef and soy sauce in medium bowl; set aside for 15 minutes.

Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add mushrooms and onion; cook, stirring frequently, until onion pieces are brown and dark bits form on the pan bottom, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer vegetables to bowl.

Add beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid evaporates and meat starts to brown, 6 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and garlic; cook, stirring constantly, until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add red wine, scraping bottom of pot with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits, and cook until syrupy, 1 to 2 minutes.

Add beef broth, chicken broth, carrots, celery, peas, corn, bay leaf, noodles, and browned mushrooms and onion; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until vegetables and meat are tender, 25 to 30 minutes. While soup is simmering, sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let stand.

When soup is finished, turn off heat. Remove bay leaves. Add gelatin mixture and stir until completely dissolved, Stir in parsley, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and serve.

My Notes:
This was delicious! We actually had it for dinner with a salad and some bread. It would also be great with potatoes in place of the noodles. The directions suggest 10 oz of red-skinned potatoes cut into 1/2" pieces (2 C) to be added during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Frozen green beans would also be a nice addition in place of the peas.