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Beef, Bean and Barley Stew – Cholent

Several Mother’s Days’ ago, my husband announced he was making Cholent for dinner.  “Chew what?” was my reply.  He said, “You know, Cholent (pronounced tshoolnt).”  Well, actually I didn’t know and I really didn’t know what he was talking about.

It turns out, it’s now one of my favorite meals, especially during the winter months.

Cholent is a very traditional Jewish stew, usually simmered overnight.  It’s served for lunch the next day, normally on the Sabbath.  This was a meal developed in order to conform with religious laws prohibiting them from working on their day of rest.

In our household, we make Cholent all the time, any day of the week and usually for dinner.  It is so, so good.  I cannot tell you how wonderful all the simmering time is for this meal.  The flavors of the ingredients (which are not many) come together and make a really fantastic and hearty dish.

While Cholent is a very traditional recipe, it has many, many variations.  Potatoes are commonly added but we do not use them as they often break apart and don’t add a lot of the characteristic flavor we like.

I also could go on about how economical this meal is to make.  We often use stew meat which is usually an inexpensive and tougher cut.  However, after 12-14 hours of cooking, it falls apart.  The stew meat is already pre-cut which is nice as opposed to chuck roast which you would have to cut up yourself. 

Overall, it’s good.  Just really, really good and we enjoy it.  You should try it, you’d be surprised how these few simple ingredients come together and make magic.

A while back I saw part of a movie on television about a rabbi who was traveling on an airplane with a pot of Cholent on his lap.  He was taking it to someone’s house for dinner after he landed.  I really want to see the rest of that movie, does anyone know what it’s called? 

First, pick through (looking for tiny stones) pinto beans and rinse with water.

In a large pot, cover beans with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Turn off heat and let beans soak in water until you need them; do not stir.

In another large, heavy, oven proof pot (I use my Dutch oven), brown stew meat in vegetable oil over medium-high heat; about 3-5 minutes.  (Do not add meat to the pan until the pan is hot.  I often add only several pieces of meat at a time so I don’t cool off the pan too quickly.)  Once browned on all sides, remove the meat and set aside.

Add marrow bones to the pan and brown over medium-high heat; about five minutes.

Return the meat to the pan along with the marrow bones.  Halve an onion and place on top of the meat along with garlic.
 

Drain the beans from the water they were boiled in and add the beans on top of the meat and bone marrow mixture.  Fill the pot with just enough water to cover the beans (the onions do not need to be covered).  Add barley, salt and pepper.  Do Not Stir this mixture.  Cholent does not need to be stirred. 

Bring to a boil over medium heat, cover and place in a 200 degree oven for 2 hours.  After two hours add more water if needed just to cover the beans, cover and place back in the oven for another 10-12 hours.  Remove onion, garlic and bones before serving and salt to taste.  I usually end up adding more salt to the pot after I taste it.  However, it’s totally up to you to add as much or as little salt as you like.

I have cooked this over night and turned it off in the morning and turned it back on before dinner to warm it up.  It’s one of those meals you can’t ruin, just don’t stir it as it breaks up the beans. 

Sop up the liquid with bread, it is so filling, one bowl will often be enough to satisfy you.

This could not be any easier to make, try it.

Beef, Bean and Barley Stew – Cholent
Serves 4-6

2 cups pinto beans, dried
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1-1/2 pounds beef stew meat or chuck roast, cut into 2″ pieces
1 pound marrow bones
1 large onion, halved
1 large clove garlic, whole
1/2 cup pearled barley, dried
1 Tablespoon salt plus more for seasoning after cooking
2 teaspoons black pepper

First, pick through (looking for tiny stones) pinto beans and rinse with water.

In a large pot, cover beans with water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Turn off heat and let beans soak in water until you need them; do not stir.

In another large, heavy, oven proof pot (I use my Dutch oven), brown stew meat in vegetable oil over medium-high heat; about 3-5 minutes.  (Do not add meat to the pan until the pan is hot.  I often add only several pieces of meat at a time so I don’t cool off the pan too quickly.)  Once browned on all sides, remove the meat and set aside.

Add marrow bones to the pan and brown over medium-high heat; about five minutes.

Return the meat to the pan along with the marrow bones.  Halve an onion and place on top of the meat along with garlic.

Drain the beans from the water they were boiled in and add the beans on top of the meat and bone marrow mixture.  Fill the pot with just enough water to cover the beans (the onions do not need to be covered).  Add barley, salt and pepper.  Do Not Stir this mixture.  Cholent does not need to be stirred. 

Bring to a boil over medium heat, cover and place in a 200 degree oven for 2 hours.  After two hours add more water if needed, just to cover the beans, cover and place back in the oven for another 10-12 hours.  Remove onion, garlic and bones before serving and salt to taste.  I usually end up adding more salt to the pot after I taste it.  However, it’s totally up to you to add as much or as little salt as you like.

I have cooked this over night and turned it off in the morning and turned it back on before dinner to warm it up.  It’s one of those meals you can’t ruin, just don’t stir it as it breaks up the beans. 

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Comments

  2. Mmm oh my that looks delicious! What a perfect looking dinner for a cold winter night! I do love stews casseroles. There’s just something so good about rich flavoursome sauces infused with meat and studded with beans. Heaven is a plate of stew and a lovely crusty bit of bread!

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  8. I don’t know what it is..maybe the extreme cold weather we are having, but I actually think I might make this for my husband even though I dislike those types of beans intensely…I think the scent of a pot of this in the house would alone comfort and fill me up!

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  10. This is one of my favorites, too. I remember my grandmother making huge pots of this on Friday night for Saturday lunch. They were quite religious, and my mother always worried about them leaving a pot on the stove overnight, but it always worked out just fine. Someone must have been looking out for them…..

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  11. Ah, yes. My BIL makes this every shabbas. He puts it in the crockpot on Friday afternoon, tucked away in a corner, by Shabbas lunch it’s perfect. I really like your addition of marrow bones… I’ll let him know!

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  13. Cathy, you have done it again. First of all, my husband will never ever eat boxed granola again. I toasted it yesterday afternoon, and he insisted on eating it for dinner! The aroma flowing from the kitchen got to him. lol Now, you can thank you husband for introducing you to Cholent. My husband and I just looked at your photos and read your recipe for the Cholent and it is a must that we prepare this meal. Your website is keeping us busy, going to the store to buy ingredients for your meals, and preparing them daily. I am going to make the Chai tea flavoring today too. With the chill in the air, hot tea is always comforting, and this seems like the perfect flavoring for the holiday season. By the way, we have even changed grocery stores in order to find everything that we need in one place. I Thanks to you I don’t have to go to that awful madhouse of a grocery store where I was previously shopping! I drink a lot more wine now, enjoy it more, now that I know more about wine. I still have a lot to learn, so keep on educating us about wine. Cathy, you are changing our lifestyle and we love it!! I think the West Coast, especially Oregon and Washington have the most interesting traits, and I plan on visiting there when you get the winery in operation. We have friends in Seattle to visit at the same time. I cannot thank you enough for your internet friendship. You are so talented.

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  18. Kathy B. and others should know that they can still make cholent without using pinto beans or even without using meat! It’s incredibly versatile, just use whatever beans you like! My mom always makes it with a combination of pinto beans, white beans and kidney beans, it doesn’t matter as they all end up tasting like the sauce. Also, since I’m a vegetarian, my mom often makes cholent without meat instead just using more beans and some vegetarian sausage to add heartiness. Soyrizo is our favorite choice for veggie meat in cholent. When I was small I thought cholent was called “chomp” and that is a very fitting name for this delicious stew! We add potatoes, typically new potatoes or baby potatoes of some kind, about five hours before serving so they cook through but don’t completely turn to mush. Everyone should go make chomp!

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  25. I was going to ask if you’d tried this in a slow cooker because it seems like a recipe that could adapt well to that, but I see from the comments it has been done. This looks really delicious. Thanks!

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  47. Kathy…I bought “beef shank for soup stock” at the Mac Winco yesterday…now I’m wondering if I have the correct thing..almost 1 lb. with one bone and lots of meat and is what the butcher directed me to when I asked for marrow bones. Should I have purchased something else?

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  54. this is so much more photogenic than teh cholent we make every shabbos!
    sometimes we add potato kugel (eggs, potatoes and onions baked into a sort-of casserole) wrapped in foil to the cooking pot, or hard-boiled eggs, or kishka, or chopped-up frankfurters. mmmm….

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  55. I browned the meat & bones in a heavy skillet, loosed the niblets of meat love with a couple TB of water and dumped that in on top of them in the crockpot (no Dutch oven). Proceeded with the recipe – high for 2 hours, then low for the rest. Woke up to my house smelling like LOVE. Can’t wait for lunch today!

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