Servings:

serves 4

Level of difficulty:

Easy

Ingredients

200g/1 pack bacon lardons or pancetta
tbs olive oil
500g diced beef (braising or stewing steak is fine)
1 tbs flour
1 large onion, sliced
1 stick of celery, finely chopped
2 carrots, roughtly chopped
300ml dark ale or stout
800ml beef stock
bunch thyme
2 bay leaves
salt and black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 160 degrees.

In a large flameproof casserole fry the bacon lardons/pancetta until browned, adding a drop of olive oil if necessary.
Remove from pan, put to one side.
Drain off bacon fat.

Heat olive oil in the casserole.
Put the beef and flour in a sealable freezer bag and toss until beef is coated.
Add beef to casserole and brown - you may need to do this in several batches.
Remove beef from casserole and put to one side with bacon.


Add onions and celery to the pan (adding more olive oil if necessary) and allow to sweat for 5 mins, or until transluscent.

Add the carrots and cook, covered, for a further 5 minutes.

Return the beef and bacon to the pan.
Add the dark ale and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until the ale reduces by about half.
Add the stock and bring to a simmer.

Add the herbs and season.

Cover the casserole and place in the oven for 2 hours or until beef is tender (check occasionally to ensure it hasn't dried out).

Serve with mashed potato and cabbage.