Serbian Ground Beef, Veggie, and Potato Bake

Description

My boyfriend lived in Serbia for 3 years and always begs me to recreate some of his favorite dishes. Based on his sketchy explanations and a little research into Eastern European spices, I concocted this hearty and slightly spicy bake with ground beef, paprika, and vegetables like celery and peppers. Great with a glass of red wine!

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, shredded
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • ½ tablespoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¾ teaspoon black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1 pinch ground cinnamon
  • 1 pinch ground cloves
  • ¼ cup water
  • ⅛ cup red wine
  • 1 cube beef bouillon
  • 2 tablespoons half-and-half
  • 2 potatoes, peeled and sliced

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a casserole dish.
  2. Cook and stir ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until browned and crumbly
  3. 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer beef and juices to a bowl.
  4. Heat oil in the same skillet. Add onion
  5. bell pepper
  6. celery
  7. and carrot; sauté until vegetables are tender
  8. 5 to 7 minutes. Return beef to the skillet and season with paprika
  9. black pepper
  10. salt
  11. red pepper flakes
  12. cinnamon
  13. and cloves. Stir in water and wine and cook until heated through
  14. about 5 minutes. Add bouillon and stir until dissolved
  15. 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in half-and-half.
  16. Layer 1/2 of the potatoes over the bottom of the prepared casserole dish. Pour beef and vegetable mixture over potatoes
  17. then layer remaining potatoes over top.
  18. Cover the dish and cook in the preheated oven until potatoes are tender
  19. about 45 minutes.

Prep Time: 25 mins

Cook Time: 1 hr

Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins

Servings: 4

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