family friendly

Slow cooker beef stew,

This recipe is so versatile – you could add button mushrooms, make it smoky by adding 1 tsp smoked paprika with the herbs, or stir in frozen peas at the end.

SERVES 4 PREP 20 mins COOK 4 hrs on high or 8 hrs on low EASY ❄

1 onion, chopped

2 celery sticks, finely chopped

2 tbsp rapeseed oil

3 carrots, halved and cut into chunks

2 bay leaves

½ pack thyme

2 tbsp tomato purée

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 beef stock cubes or stock pots

900g beef for braising such as skirt, buy a whole piece and cut it yourself for bigger chunks or buy ready-diced 2 tsp cornflour (optional)

½ small bunch parsley, chopped buttery mash, to serve (optional)

1 Fry the onion and celery in 1 tbsp oil over a low heat until they start to soften – about 5 mins. Add the carrots, bay and thyme, fry for 2 mins, stir in the purée and Worcestershire sauce, add 600ml boiling water, stir and tip everything into a slow cooker. Crumble over the stock cubes or add the stock pots and stir, then season with pepper (don’t add salt as the stock may be salty).

2 Clean out the frying pan and fry the beef in the remaining oil in batches until it is well browned, then tip each batch into the slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hrs, or on high for 4 hrs.

3 If you want to thicken the gravy, mix the corn-four with a splash of cold water to make a paste, then stir in 2 tbsp of the liquid from the slow cooker. Tip back into the slow cooker, stir and cook for a further 30 mins on high. Stir in the parsley and season again to taste. Serve with mash, if you like. Leave to cool before freezing.

GOOD TO KNOW folate • iron • 2 of 5-a-day PER SERVING 474 kcals • fat 25g • saturates 9g • carbs 10g • sugars 9g • fibre 4g • protein 48g • salt 2.0g