Moschari Kokkinisto me Fasoulakia, Pataties kai Kolokithia
(Yiayia’s Light Tomato Beef Stew)
I shared a photo recently of a big pot of moshari kokkinisto bubbling away on yiayia’s stove, and everyone absolutely lost it. Maybe it was the way it looked, rich but gentle, vegetables nestled into the sauce. Or maybe it was something deeper. Familiar. Comforting. Like a dish you’ve eaten a hundred times before, even if you haven’t.
Either way, I knew I had to document it for you. This is exactly how yiayia makes her kokkinisto.
See, I like my kokkinisto rich and deeply tomatoey. Yiayia doesn’t. She prefers it light, less tomato, more balance. Yet somehow she still manages to create the most beautiful, flavourful sauce. It’s never heavy, never sharp, just rounded and comforting, the kind of food you want to eat with a spoon straight from the pot.
This is a true stove-top dish. Slow, patient, and made with care.
Eat It the Real Yiayia Way
If you want to take this dish to the next level and eat kokkinisto the same way yiayia does, do this:
Break up a few pieces of Cretan dakos or paximadia and nestle them straight into the sauce on your plate. Let them soak up the tomato, olive oil, and juices from the meat and vegetables until they soften.
It’s not about presentation, it’s about flavour. And once you try it this way, there’s no going back.
YIAYIA'S MOSHARI KOKKINISTO | Yiayia’s Tomato Beef Stew with Green Beans, Potatoes and Zucchini
Mary PolitisIngredients
- 1 kg chuck steak cut into large pieces and well trimmed of excess fat
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for browning the meat
- 80 ml extra virgin olive oil ⅓ cup
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 150 ml tomato passata
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 bay leaves
- Water enough to just cover the meat
- 3 potatoes cut into quarters
- 1 large sweet potato cut into pieces the same size as the potatoes
- 200 g green beans
- 4 –5 small grey zucchini left whole or halved
Instructions
- Season the beef generously with salt and pepper.
- Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a deep, heavy-based pot over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in batches, making sure not to overcrowd the pot. Take your time here, good colour means good flavour. Once browned, remove the meat and set aside.
- Lower the heat to medium and add the remaining 80 ml of olive oil to the same pot. Add the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Stir in the garlic and cook briefly until fragrant.
- Add the tomato passata, cinnamon stick, and bay leaves. Stir well, letting the tomato cook gently for a minute or two.
- Return the meat to the pot, mixing it through the sauce. Pour in enough water to just reach the top of the meat, not drown it. Bring to a gentle simmer.
- Cover and cook over medium heat for up to 1½ hours, stirring occasionally, until the meat is almost tender but still holding its shape.
- At this stage, add the potatoes, sweet potato, green beans, and zucchini. Gently mix everything through so the vegetables are coated in the sauce. If needed, add a little more water, just enough to keep things cooking smoothly.
- Cover again and simmer for 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
- Remove the lid and continue cooking for a further 20 minutes, allowing the sauce to reduce and thicken slightly. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.