Donal's beef and Guinness stew

This is a perfect dish for a cold autumn day. You can serve this as a stew or take it one step further and use it as the filling for an impressive pie.

Credit: Donal's Meals in Minutes

• serves

  6

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  1:45 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Do make sure the meat is tender before serving – different cuts of meat will require longer cooking times.

Ingredients

• 30 g plain flour
• 1 kg shoulder of beef, cut into 3cm chunks
• 1-2 tbsp canola (rapeseed) oil
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 3 carrots, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
• 150 ml beef stock
• 500 ml Guinness
• 400 g baby new potatoes
• 1 bay leaf
• Sea salt and black pepper
• Crusty bread, to serve

Instructions

1. Tip the flour onto a plate and season generously with salt and pepper. Dredge the beef pieces in the flour and then shake off any excess.
2. Heat the oil in a casserole over a medium–high heat. Brown the meat in 2 batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate.
3. Add another drop of oil if you need it and then add the onion, carrots and celery. Fry for 5 minutes before returning the beef pieces to the casserole along with their juices.
4. Pour in the stock, Guinness, potatoes and bay leaf and season to taste. Reduce the heat and gently simmer, partially covered with a lid, for 1½ hours, or until the liquid has reduced and the beef is meltingly tender. Serve with crusty bread.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Do make sure the meat is tender before serving – different cuts of meat will require longer cooking times.