Hachee is a traditional beef and onion stew found in virtually every Dutch home. It’s a delicious comfort dish to enjoy during the cold winter months. The long, slow cooking time produce super tender meat and a rich sauce with wonderful depth of flavor. Here is an authentic recipe that you’re whole family will enjoy.
Eet smakelijk!
The word hachee has its origins in the French hacher, meaning “to chop” and Hachee is sometimes referred to as a “hash.” Hachee has been around since the middle ages and like many of the traditional dishes of Europe that we know and love today, it was originally a peasant dish, created as a means of using up leftover meat and vegetables. The vinegar was used to tenderize tough pieces of meat (much like French peasants used wine). Less expensive vegetables likes onions were used in generous amounts. A long cooking process further ensured the meat would be tender. Hachee remains a popular and much-loved dish in the Netherlands. So much so that you can find it ready-made in grocery stores. But nothing beats homemade, and your patience in the long, slow cooking process will yield results that you’re entire family will love.
The flavor profile of Hachee is significantly different from the traditional beef stews we know here in the U.S.. Hachee uses equal parts of beef and onion and the onions are caramelized. The featured flavors in this stew are cloves, juniper berries, black peppercorns, bay leaves and vinegar – all of which come together to provide a wonderful depth of flavor that is both rich and comforting. The flavor of Hachee shares similarities with German Sauerbraten.
I made this last week when my husband’s family came to WA for a visit. My father-in-law lived in the Netherlands for two years as a young man and fell in love with the country, its people, and its food. Many of the dishes he enjoyed then he hasn’t had since – almost 40 years later – a fact he often laments. (Sorry for alluding to your age, John.) So I wanted to surprise him with a traditional Dutch meal. I narrowed it down to three options: Boerenkool Stampot, Hutspot, and Hachee. I decided on Hachee. It’s a little more interesting, plus you can’t find the smoked Dutch sausages (rookworst) here that are traditionally eaten with the other two dishes. And it also gave me the excuse to finally make the braised red cabbage with it – a side dish that is equally popular in Germany (Rotkohl) and that several of my readers have asked me about. My father-in-law readily recognized the dish. “This is the dish I had almost every night during my first two months in the Netherlands!” And he hadn’t had it since until now. We all really enjoyed this Hachee. And the leftovers the next day, after the flavors had even more time to meld, were even better.
Let’s get started!
Cube the beef and pat it dry with a paper towel – this will ensure that it browns well. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
Chop the onions.
Brown the beef in a Dutch oven. Brown the cubes on all sides. Brown in batches so as not to overcrowd the beef – that will prevent it from browning properly. Remove the beef and set aside, leaving the burnt bits on the bottom of the pan – those will provide a lot of flavor to the stew.
Add some more butter and caramelize the onions until golden brown. Add the flour and stir to combine.
Add the beef to the onions.
Add the beef broth and the seasonings. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 2 1/2 hours. Uncover and simmer for another 30 minutes to help thicken the sauce. If it needs further thickening, make a slurry with equal parts of flour and water and stir it into the stew, stirring constantly to prevent lumping. Return to a simmer until the stew is thickened. Add salt, pepper and more red wine vinegar to taste.
Hachee is traditionally served with aardappelen (potatoes) and rode kool met appeltjes (braised red cabbage with apples – click for recipe). A serving of applesauce is also common. Eet smakelijk!
- 2 pounds beef, cubed in ½ in. pieces, blotted dry with paper towel, lightly seasoned with salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 pounds yellow onions (about 4 large), finely chopped
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups good quality beef stock
- 3 large bay leaves
- 4 cloves
- 4 juniper berries (look in health food stores or order online)
- 10 black peppercorns
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Melt the butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the beef on all sides, working in batches so as not to overcrowd. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Leave the browned bits in the pan (important for flavor).
- Add the onions and some more butter if needed and cook until caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the flour and stir until combined. Add the beef to the onions, stir to combine, and cover with the beef stock just until covered. Add the seasonings and red wine vinegar, stir to combine.
- Increase the heat and bring the stew to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2½ hours. Uncover and simmer for another 30 minutes to further thicken the stew. Add salt, pepper and more red wine vinegar to taste.
- Serve with mashed potatoes and braised red cabbage.
Hans van de Water says
Hi Kimberly, my family migrated to Australia in 1955 from Holland and my mum used to make this dish which I loved. Yours is the equal to if not better. Thanks so much for sharing it.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Hans, thank you so much!
Robin Frentz says
Hello Kimberley, how lovely and interesting to find a Hachee recipe outside the Netherlands (I live in Almere, a suburb of Amsterdam).
Cooking is a passion of mine and I use international dishes but also recipes given to me by my mother and grandmother. For hachee I have a slightly different recipe given to me by my grandmother and here it is.
Use the ingredients mentioned but drop the cloves, the flour and the red wine vinegar. Instead add white vinegar a tablespoon full. Add sugar a teaspoon. Add nutmeg half a teaspoon. For meat use beef ribs cut like you mentioned.
I usually prepare the dish a day in advance. Let it cool down then reheat it slowly and let simmer for another hour before serving. Serve the hachee combined with cooked floury potatoes and cooked red cabbage.
Lastly, a Dutch oven works perfect but any pan with a lid and suitable for stewing works great also.
PS, I have alternative meat dishes to combine with Dutch stamppot instead of Rookworst, for example “Draadjesvlees”, let me know if you are interested.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Robin, thanks for sharing your family’s version. Agreed, stews like this are always better the next day after the flavors have had time to meld.
Laura Vander Wees says
My parents came to Canada after the 1st war. Mom made hamburger with onions and there was vinegar but I cannot remember what else she put in there,but it was served over mashed potatoes and so good. Was this just a home made recipe?? Or is there a Dutch recipe for this.?
I do know how to make the borenkool and stampot with carrots. Just love the Dutch meals.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Laura, I’m not sure. It may very well be that she was making an economical version of hachee using ground beef, but maybe there is an actual Dutch dish of that description. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to chime in…
Anonymous says
Hi Laura and Kimberly,
I am not sure what is meant. There is a quick dish with no specific recipy name that I know of with the same seasoning as hachee yet using ground beef and which is baked instead of stewed. It takes a lot less time because stewing is not necessary, however it tastes and looks a lot different from the traditional hachee like it is mentioned in this recipy.
However Laura mentiones a hamburger with unions and vinager. Here in Holland we have something called a Duitse Biefstuk which translates into German hamburger. As far as I know it is not native to Germany and exists in several European countries but specifically in Holland it is called like that. It is finely chopped beef with extremely finely chopped unions, ground cloves, an egg, seasoning and it is shaped in the form of a hamburger. You bake it, considerably longer than a hamburger because usually they are made considerably thicker and heavier than a regular hamburger. You can serve it with many potatoe and vegetable dishes including the Dutch stampot dishes or a chicory salad for example.
john says
hi Kimberly
i wonder if this dish could be adapted to slow cooked sheep shanks?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi John, I don’t see why not. I would follow the steps as outlined, giving the shanks a good browning, and then in Step 3 add everything to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Check it a bit earlier to see if the meat is fork tender.
Leanne says
Hi Kimberley. It’s my 1st time making this recipe so please excuse my ignorance. Do you place the cloves, peppercorns and berries in whole? Do you remove them (with the bay leaves) before serving? Thankyou :)
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Leanne, yes correct, place them in whole and remove them at the end. Happy cooking!
Anne says
I made this dish for the first time and my family and son-in-law just loved it. I was wondering…..could this dish be made with a whole roast as well?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Anne, thank you! Absolutely, you can do a whole roast.
Marijcke says
Mariska street got it all perfect hutspot, boerenkool hachee.
Luckily we have a dutch store so i can get the rookworst
By the way one in my family hates…. onions so i have tried carrots with leek instead of onions. Delicious.
I am dutch too
Am just making hachee right now
I saw some very strange recipies here.
Good for you Mariska
Sjors Pals says
We used to eat this with horse meat 😄
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Sjors, I believe it. Eating horse is unheard of in the U.S. but it’s not hugely uncommon in several western European countries.
Debby Vry says
My Mom made this every so often and she was a great cook. When I read your recipe it reminded me of her and decided I had to make it this weekend. It was my 1st time and it tastes delicious; if I say so myself. Extremely flavorful. Juniper berries was the only missing ingredient. I also cooked the 3 hours in the oven at 350°F after the startup on the stove. Worked out well.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Debby, thanks for the feedback!
Robert says
My mother would always add a table spoon of Appelstroop, Dutch apple spread to this recipe. That helped give it a lovely round sweetness.
Diana says
Can this recipe be made in a crockpot?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Diana, yes it can. Follow the steps as written and then in step 3 transfer everything to the crock pot and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours or until the beef is fork tender.
Diana says
Thank you so much. I can’t wait to try the recipe. I’m throwing a party to introduce my family to Dutch cuisine. My lovely daughter in law to be was born in Amsterdam and I wanted to celebrate her heritage with the rest of the family. This looked like an excellent dish to serve! I will let you know how it turns out. Thank you again! Diana
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That sounds so fun, Diana, what a great idea! Have a wonderful party and I look forward to hearing what everyone thought of the stew!
Robin McGrath says
Back in 1972, I adopted a seven year old girl who had been living with a Dutch foster family, before she taken and put into FOUR failed adoptive placements. By the time I got her, she was a wreck–unable to speak or eat or sleep. I was at my wits end, but a Dutch friend suggested I try some traditional Dutch food, and gave me a few recipes. One was for spinach with lemon and butter nd hard chopped eggs, and another was for “vinegar stew,” pretty well the same as this recipe. She began eating and bit by bit she came alive again. She died unexpectedly last year, but I think about her a lo, and I am so grateful for the loving Dutch foster parents she had as I’m sure they were the ones who gave her the strength to recover from trauma she endured. Today, I was remembering that stew, and since I hadn’t made it in many years, I looked for a recipe and found yours. I’m going to go and make it and I will probably cry when I put it on the table, but that’s as it should be. We have to grieve for those we have lost, and what better way to do it than to eat good food with those who are still here with us. Thank you.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Robin, thank you for sharing that tender and heartfelt story. I hope you and your family find peace and solace as you share this meal and the many memories together <3