It’s that time of year again, with the nights darker and the days shorter and colder, when we all need more comfort food. There is little more comforting than a plate of stew that has been bubbling slowly away for a long time. I am particularly proud of this one because I have in the past relied on the ubiquitous stock cube for gravies and stews and I am trying to wean myself away from them. I have been making my own stocks when I have bones available from sunday roasts, but last night there was no beef stock left over in the freezer. So instead I browned the meat until caramelized and cooked the onions for longer than I normally would so that they took on a good caramel colour. This proved to provide enough colour and flavour to make a tasty stew using water instead of a stock cube – great progress for me. I was really pleased with the result and it has proved that I don’t need to use a stock cube when I am cooking a stew. The flavour is further enhanced by the vegetables and adding some herbs into the mix.
Feeds two greedy people.
300g (10 oz) shin beef, cubed
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 parsnip, peeled and cubed
2 carrots, peeled and cubed
55 ml (2 fl oz) madeira wine (or you could use any fortified wine)
10 g (½ oz) plain flour
1 tsp mustard powder
1 bay leaf
½ tsp dried oregano or marjoram
½ tsp dried thyme
425 ml (¾ pint) boiling water
salt & pepper to taste
Method
Heat a smear of oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat and add cubes of the beef (make sure you don’t crowd the pan or they will steam rather than brown). Allow the cubes to brown for a good few minutes without stirring them, then turn them to brown the other side. You really want gooey bits of beef sticking to the base of the pan and a good colour to develop on the beef. When all of the beef has been browned remove to a plate and add the onion to the pan. Allow it to cook for at least ten minutes until it develops a good caramel colour (it may take longer than this). Add the parsnip and carrot and cook again for another five minutes, add the meat back to the pan of vegetables. Add the flour, mustard powder and herbs and cook for a good few minutes, stirring the pot so that the flour has a chance to cook. Add the madeira and stir well, cooking for a minute or so. Add the water and salt and pepper to taste and turn the heat down to a gentle simmer. Simmer for at least two hours before serving with lots of bread to mop up the gravy. I enjoyed it with a bit of my quince jelly.
