Serves 6
This is one of my old recipes I haven’t visited for a while, but the cold snap made me long for more slow cooked stewy things.
– 1 kg beef (I used chump), cut into large cubes
– 1 cup flour
– 1/2 teaspoon pepper
– 2 tbsp oil (I used macadamia nut)
– 1 large onion, cut into eighths
– 1 leek, thickly sliced
– 2 medium carrots, thickly sliced
– 4 or 5 cloves garlic, thumped and skinned
– 2 tablespoons brandy (optional, but hey, have fun)
– 200 ml red wine
– 1-2 cups chicken stock
– juice of half an orange
– sprig of thyme
– 2 bay leaves
– 2 strips of orange rind
– Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
Heat the oil in a large, heavy based casserole (one that can go in the oven later, see note) over a high heat.
In batches, toss the meat in the seasoned flour (use a plastic bag), shake off the excess flour and brown. Don’t crowd the pan, or the meat will stew instead of brown.
When all the meat has been done, and is sitting happily on a plate, turn the heat down to medium and add some more oil if the pan is dry. Now toss in the vegies and let them cook for a couple of minutes, before popping the meat back in and turning the heat back to high.
Warm the brandy in a little saucepan, light it and pour it, still flaming, into the pan. Give the pan a shake till the flames die out.
Now add the wine and give the pan a stir and a scrape as it comes to the boil. Add the juice and the stock and bring the lot back up to the boil. Let it simmer away for a few minutes, then add the herbs and the orange peel.
Cover and place in the oven. Let it cook for a couple of hours, or more if the meat is still chewy.
Note: I cooked this quite successfully on top of the stove in a pressure cooker, because I only had 45 minutes, not three hours. I don’t see why you couldn’t cook it slowly on top of the stove as well.