Greek Lemon Beef Stew (Moscharaki Lemonato)
Traditional Greek moscharaki lemonato — tender beef in a bright lemon–garlic sauce.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 90
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Category: Main course
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 kg beef chuck or shoulder, cut into large pieces
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 2-3 tbsp flour (for dredging the meat)
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 large carrot, sliced (optional)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- salt & black pepper
- juice of 1 large lemon (more to taste)
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 1/2 cup warm water or broth
Instructions
- Lightly flour the beef. Season the beef with salt & pepper. Lightly dust the pieces with flour, shaking off any excess. This helps with browning and naturally thickens the sauce later.
- Brown the beef. Heat the olive oil and brown the floured beef on all sides until golden. Don’t rush this step — it builds the entire base of the sauce.
- Add aromatics. Add the onion, garlic, and carrot. Cook 2–3 minutes until softened.
- Build the stew. Add bay leaf, oregano, pepper, and enough warm water to almost cover the meat.
- Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer gently for 1.5–2 hours, until the beef is soft.
- Make it lemonato. Once the beef is tender, add the lemon juice and zest.
- Simmer uncovered for 5–10 minutes so the sauce tightens naturally and becomes silky.
- Serve with rice, mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, pasta or fries.