Slow Cooked Beef Stew

Slow Cooked Beef Stew

For the ultimate comfort food on a cold night, you can't beat this tasty, slow-cooked stew!  Best served with buttery mash & crusty bread!

Serves 8

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 4 hours

Ingredients

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1.5 kg braising/stewing beef chopped into bite-size chunks

3 tbsp plain flour mixed with a pinch of salt and pepper

3 large onions, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

2 tbsp red currant jelly or cranberry sauce

750 ml red wine

3 large carrots, peeled and chopped

2 large parsnips, peeled & chopped

3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 small swede, peeled and chopped

3 celery sticks, chopped

1 litre beef stock

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

4 bay leaves

2 tsp dark brown sugar

¾ tsp salt

¾ tsp crushed black pepper

To serve:

Buttery mashed potato

Chunks of fresh crusty bread

Fresh thyme

Method

1.    Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F

2.    Heat the oil in a large ovenproof pan or casserole. Dust the chunks of beef in the flour and fry the beef for 7-8 minutes until golden brown all over. Add the onions and cook for a further 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic. Add the red currant jelly, then pour in the red wine and simmer for 5 minutes.

3.    Add in the carrots, parsnips, potatoes, swede, celery, stock, tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, sugar, salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil then place a lid on and cook in the oven for 3-4 hours – stirring a couple of times during cooking (alternatively you could transfer to a slow cooker and cook on high for 5-6 hours or low for 7-8 hours).

4.    Serve topped with a little fresh thyme, buttery mash and some freshly cut bread.  Enjoy!