When the weather gets cold there’s nothing more warming and fulfilling than a hearty, delicious winter stew.
For this recipe we’ve used the shin cut of Cumbrian beef from Airey’s Farm Shop (mail order available). The beer is a delicious stout, homebrewed by Herdy crew member Joanne (is there a limit to this woman’s talents!) However, if you don’t have access to a talented homebrewer friend, you can use any full-flavoured bitter or stout.
To enjoy this tasty stew at work, why not pop it in a Herdy Yan Food Flask? Team it up with some crusty, buttered bread and you’ll be the envy of all your workmates!
This winter stew recipe makes 4 portions.
Ingredients for making Cumberland Winter Stew
900 g of shin beef
3 large carrots (peeled)
1 large leek (or two medium onions)
2 sticks celery
550ml beer of choice (stout or bitter)
1 beef stock cube
2 cloves of garlic
Sprig of fresh thyme
2 fresh bay leaves
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp plain flour
1 scant tsp dark brown sugar
Olive oil
How to make Cumberland Winter Stew
1. Chop the carrots, leek, and celery to a medium dice.
2. Finely chop the garlic.
3. Dice the shin beef into 2cm cubes.
4. Season the beef with salt and pepper, then brown (in batches) in a frying pan with a little olive oil. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
5. De-glaze the frying pan with the beer and set aside.
6. Add a little olive oil to the pressure cooker or casserole and gently fry off the vegetables and garlic until the leek (or onion) becomes translucent.
7. Add the tomato puree to the vegetables and cook whilst stirring for a couple of minutes.
8. Add the browned beef (along with any juices) to the vegetables. Add the flour and stir until the flour is fully absorbed.
9. Season with salt & pepper.
10. Add the beer from the frying pan, thyme, bay leaves, and stock cube.
11. Top up with water until the beef and vegetables are just covered.
12. Cook for 1 hour in a pressure cooker or 2½ hours in the oven at 160°C, gas mark 3.
13. When cooked add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
Tuck in!
And there you have it: a batch of deliciously fulfilling and warming Cumberland winter stew. Serve in a bowl on its own or with some top-notch bread. And be sure to save some for lunch at work; you can keep it hot in one of our Herdy Roam Free Food Flasks.
Is this a recipe you’d like to try out? Or do you have your own winter warming favourites? Let’s have a natter in comments below, or join the flock on our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or email us.
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