A classic yet comforting and warming recipe, the humble cosy beef stew is always a favourite. This has bags of flavour, and is sure to be a big hit for the whole family!
There are some recipes that are always crowd pleasers. You know the ones I mean! The ones that bring back memories of family time, total comfort food. The ones that smell amazing whilst cooking, and you can't wait for dinner!
One of these recipes for me is the humble beef stew. With just a few simple ingredients, a bit of tlc and patience, you end up with a truly delicious meal.
We've given beef stew a bit of an update and made it gluten-free, and IBS friendly by using the fabulous free from fairy flour made by our friend Vicki! This flour is the worlds first rice free gluten-free flour, and works better than all other gluten-free flours out there. It also doesn't leave a grainy texture, thanks to being rice free. It's the only flour we use in our house now, and you can get your hands on it by buying it here. And, it's recently won silver in the FFFA 2017, so you know it's good!
We've also used our favourite a2 Milk™ as it's the only dairy milk that doesn't cause me IBS symptoms. I've written lots about my discovery of a2 Milk™a2 Milk™ and how much it has helped me, and if you are suffering with IBS symptoms, then why not give it a try and see if it helps you too!
And, we've also included our favourite coffee from Perkulatte which gives a delicious warm flavour to the sauce element of the stew. Now if you've not heard of Perkulatte before, it was set up by Kate and provides a coffee subscription service straight to your door each month. Kate created the worlds first coffee advent calendar which almost broke the internet last December. Word on the street is that it'll be back bigger and better this year, so keep your eyes peeled as it will sell out ridiculously fast again!!
Now, back to the recipe!
You will need:
- 14oz (400g) braising beef
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Pack of bacon lardons
- 1 leek – washed and sliced
- x2 carrots – washed and sliced
- Handful of mushrooms – washed and sliced
- 1 bottle gluten-free ale
- 2fl oz (55ml) Perkulatte coffee (made up)
- 3.5fl oz (100ml) beef stock
- 1.5oz (45g) Free From Fairy gluten-free plain flour
- Pinch of salt and pepper to season
- Bay leaf
- Natures Store gluten-free dumpling mix
- 3fl oz (90ml) warmed a2 Milk™
Preheat the oven to 140°c/ 280°f/ Gas mark 1.
Add the beef, bacon lardons and olive oil to a large oven proof casserole dish and cook over a medium heat until the meat has browned. Make sure you stir frequently so the meat doesn’t stick to the bottom of the dish. Then remove the meat while you cook the vegetables.
Add the leek, carrots and mushrooms and cook for around 4-5 minutes until softened, continuing to stir regularly.
In a jug, add the flour and a little of the ale and stir until lump free. Add the rest of the ale a little at a time and continue to stir.
Pour the contents of the jug into the casserole dish, along with the beef stock and coffee and stir well.
Return the meat to the casserole dish, season with salt and pepper, and add the bay leaf.
Stir well, then cover with a lid and place in the oven to cook for 2.5hrs to allow the meat to go soft and tender.
Meanwhile, make the dumplings using the dumpling mix and the warmed a2 Milk™.
Carefully remove the casserole dish from the oven, remove the lid and place the dumplings inside, before returning the casserole dish to the oven uncovered for a further 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven, take out the bay leaf, and leave to cool slightly before serving.
*BE CAREFUL AS THE STEW WILL BE VERY HOT WHEN FIRST TAKEN OUT OF THE OVEN*
Enjoy!
