Beef bourguignon

A sumptuously rich, slow-cooked beef stew, braised with red wine and topped with crispy pancetta; this makes such a stunning-yet-comforting winter dinner.

SERVES 8 PREP 30min COOK 3hr 40min

• 1tbsp sunflower oil

• 120g bacon lardons

• 20 small shallots, peeled,

6 of them cut in 1/2, the rest left whole

• 1.4kg beef braising steak, cut into large chunks

• 3tbsp plain flour

• 1tbsp tomato purée

• 750ml red wine (It doesn’t have to be an expensive wine; I use Shiraz)

• 240ml beef stock

• 3 bay leaves

• 1tsp dried thyme

• 16-20 Chantenay carrots, peeled or scrubbed

• 150g chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced

1 Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Heat the oil in a large ovenproof casserole dish over medium heat and add the lardons. Fry until golden brown, then transfer to a bowl using a slotted spoon.

2 Add the halved shallots to the pan and fry over high heat for a few min, until all seared, then transfer to the bowl with the lardons.

3 There should still be 2-3tbsp oil left in the pan at this point. If there isn’t, top up with a little more. In a bowl, toss the beef with the flour, ½tsp salt and ½tsp freshly ground black pepper.

4 In batches, brown the beef in the pan over medium-high heat (about 5-6min per batch). Transfer each cooked batch to a bowl, before starting on the next batch.

5 When cooked, return the beef to the pan and stir in the tomato purée. Add the wine, stock, bay leaves, thyme, carrots, mushrooms and the whole shallots. Give everything a stir and scrape any bits that may have stuck to the bottom of

the pan – this adds so much flavour.

6 Bring to the boil, then cover pan with a lid and place in the oven to cook for 3hr. Check a couple of times to make sure the bourguignon isn’t going dry. If so, add a splash of water to the casserole and stir.

7 After 3hr, stir the bacon lardons and fried shallots into the pan, place the lid back on and return to the oven for another 10min to heat through. Serve with your favourite vegetables.➺