Beef and ale casserole

READY IN 8 HOURS 30 MINUTES

Low-calorie cooking spray

1kg lean casserole or braising steak, all visible fat removed, cut into small chunks

2 medium onions, sliced

¼ tsp sweetener granules

350g small chestnut mushrooms 25g dried porcini mushrooms

4 garlic cloves, crushed

300ml boiling beef stock

100ml brown ale

1 tsp tomato purée

3 large fresh thyme sprigs, leaves picked 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 450g carrots, peeled and sliced 2 level tbsp cornflour Steamed cabbage, to serve Boiled mashed potatoes, made without

cream or butter, to serve

1

Spray a large non-stick frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and place over a high heat. Add half the beef to the pan and brown it all over. Spoon the browned beef into the slow cooker then repeat with the rest of the beef. Add the onions and sweetener to the frying pan, stir-fry until browned and add them to the slow cooker too. (Browning the meat and onions gives a lovely depth of flavour, but if you’re short on time you can skip this stage.)

2

Add the fresh and dried mushrooms to the slow cooker, along with the garlic, stock, ale, tomato purée, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and a little salt and pepper. Stir well, cover and cook on low for four hours.

3

Stir in the carrots, cover again and cook for a further three to four hours or until the beef is almost tender. Mix the cornflour with

1 tbsp water to make a paste. Stir it into the beef, cover again and cook for one more hour or until the stew has thickened and the beef and carrots are tender.

4

Serve hot with the cabbage and mashed potatoes.