Vegetable Beef Soup

In a large heavy duty Dutch oven, brown the meat in oil over medium-high heat. You will want to do this a little at a time in batches, so the meat will brown and not burn. When the meat is all browned, put it all back in the pot with the tomatoes and a can full of water. I like to squish up the tomatoes some, so the pieces aren’t so big. Stir this all around and be sure to get up all the browned stuff on the bottom of the pot. This adds great flavor to the soup. Add salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Reduce heat to a slow boil and cook, covered, for 30–40 minutes or until meat starts to get tender.

Add celery, carrots, and onion to the pot and more water so that everything is well covered. Also add the oregano and bay leaves and continue with slow-boil for another 20 minutes. Add potatoes and more water to keep things covered, and keep cooking for another 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Soup is now ready unless you want to just let it sit on warm for a while. It will just get better.