Though there are many Amish cookbooks and recipe websites, in general they seem to concentrate in Amish deserts and baked goods and offer comparably few main dish recipes. Many of these, moreover, seem to be for everyday American fare, e.g. meatloaf, chili and chicken pot pie. I wanted to cook something a little bit more "unusual" and typical.
That was not to be, I couldn't find anything of the sort, but I decided upon this Beef and Noodles dish because I read that the Amish (in Indiana, at least) eat noodles at least once a day. The dish also seemed pretty easy to make and unusual in that it was cooked entirely in the oven. I imagine this is how casseroles are generally cooked - and this dish is basically a casserole - but I had never made one before and it was not apparent to me why you'd make it in the oven rather than on the stove top. I still haven't figured that out, though I imagine that, in addition to being a more uniform form of heat, having the pot in the oven a keeps it out of the reach of children.
In any case, I didn't have great hopes for this dish - and it didn't disappoint me in that. I found it bland and a little bit bitter - perhaps from the vegetables that flavored the broth. Needless to say, nobody asked for seconds. There are so many great ways in which to cook cheap cuts of meat (see, for example, my recipe for Cuban Ropa Vieja) that this one seems like a waste.
Traditionally you would serve this dish over mashed potatoes. I didn't, as I didn't think there was a need for two starches in one meal, but I can't imagine it would have improved the dish.
Beef and Noodles
Ingredients
5 lbs. beef chuck roast, well trimmed 1 large onion, quartered 1 small green pepper, seeded and quartered 10 cloves 2 large carrots, cut in thirds 2 celery ribs, cut in thirds 1 cup fresh parsley springs 3 bay leaves 2 beef bouillion cubes 1/2 tsp. black pepper 3 quarts hot water 1/2 lb. noodles Instructions
Preheat oven to 325. Place meat in a large oven-safe dutch oven or roasting pan. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the noodles. Cover and bake for about 3 hours.
Remove from the oven, uncover and let cool for a while. Remove meat and set aside. With a slotted spoon, scoop all the vegetables (save for 2 pieces of carrot) from the broth and discard. Shred remaining carrot pieces and return to the broth. Cut meat into bite-size cubes and return to the broth. Discard bones and fat. Add dry noodles and mix well. Cover the pan and return it to the oven. Cook for 1 hour. You may want to check during cooking to make sure there is enough liquid in the dish - if not add water.
Adapted from Cooking from Quilty County