Beef and Guinness stew

Happy New Year! Ohhhh, so many things to look forward to this year such as new dishes, new places, new experiences! I can’t wait!

I’m just back from a few days in Ireland, at home with me Mammy (hello Mammy!). Before I left, I made beef casserole for the family, something I haven’t eaten since Mammy made it every week or so when I was growing up.  I have to admit, I prefer mine to Mam’s (sorry Mam), and I’d no problem convincing SD to eat it. One thing puzzled me though. Mam’s beef casserole was pale brown while all the recipe’s I found included some tomato puree. I asked Mammy about this and she said that she simply dismissed the idea of putting tomato puree in! Anyway, it was yum, and it will be made again.

On my return to Belgium, I decided to make some beef and Guinness casserole, something that Mammy never made for us.

Beef and Guinness stew

I used another recipe from the RTE website for the casserole, and used some steak that was going for half nothing in the supermarket. There were only two of us for dinner last night, and we got two helping each, plus some left over for lunch for one today.

400g beef

1 tablespoon flour

a dribble of olive oil

2 carrots, chopped into rings

1 chopped onion

2 leeks, chopped into pieces about 2cm long

two cloves garlic, crushed

330ml Guinness (one bottle)

a dribble of water

1 teaspoon of Oxo/Bovril or beef stock

1 teaspoon of brown sugar

a few shakes of dried thyme, rosemary and savory (about a teaspoon of each)

170g lardons

2 small potatoes per person, or as many as you’d eat yourself

Chop the beef into bite-sized chunks and brown them in the olive oil in a hot, heavy-based pot. Once they’re all browned, remove them and cook the onion and crushed garlic for about five minutes in the remaining oil, then add the carrots and cook these for a few minutes.

Pop the meat back in and coat the whole lot in the tablespoon of flour, stirring well to coat the whole lot. Slowly pour in the bottle of Guinness and stir it through. I added a dribble of water, say about 30ml, and a teaspoon of Oxo together with a little salt and pepper and the herbs. Cover with a lid and simmer on a gentle heat for 40 minutes.

We both tested the sauce at this stage and thought it quite bitter, so we added a teaspoon of brown sugar to soften it. When you’re making yours, test it to see and season as you like.

Add the leeks and the potatoes, nestling them into sauce and scatter the lardons over the lot. Cover with the lid and cook until the potatoes are done – about another 20 minutes or so. The lardons really added to the dish, mellowing it out a lot. 

Aubergines stuffed with spiced pork

I made these stuffed aubergines for dinner last night, from Domini Kemp in the Irish Times. I guess it took about an hour. It was delicious, and went down well with all of us. The mince stuffing is particularly good (I used pork and veal). It’s going to be my go-to mince recipe from now on.

Aubergines stuffed with spiced pork

The recipe is a bit ambiguous on when you are meant to add the breadcrumbs, so I added these just after the aubergine.

I’m still on the look-out for fresh breadcrumbs for sale in the supermarkets. No luck so far, so I make my own.

Serves 3-4

2-3 aubergines, each weighing 220g approximately

150ml olive oil

Salt and pepper

100g breadcrumbs

80ml milk

1 small onion, peeled and chopped

250g minced pork (and veal as you get in the Belgian supermarkets)

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¾ tsp ground cumin

1 large tomato, roughly chopped

1 dessertspoon red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar

50g Parmesan

1 egg

120g grated Cheddar

Chopped parsley, to serve

Preheat an oven to 180 degrees/gas 4. Cut the aubergines in half and place them on a baking tray or two. Score the flesh, drizzle them generously with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake for approximately 20 minutes. Let them cool down and when they are easily handled, spoon out the flesh and leave it aside in a bowl.

Mix the breadcrumbs and milk together. Sweat the onion in a good two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the minced meat and cook for a moment. Add the garlic and spices and cook for a few minutes. Season well, and then add the vinegar and tomato.

Stir and continue to cook out till the mixture gets quite dry and the juice from the tomato and vinegar disappears. The meat will cook out fully, so don’t worry about this. You are stuffing the aubergines with a fully cooked mixture. Stir in the cooked aubergine (chop up any big bits) and the breadcrumbs.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool for five minutes. Add the Parmesan and beaten egg. Mix well, then spoon the filling into the hollow boats of aubergine. Sprinkle with the cheddar cheese another glug of olive oil, some salt and pepper, and bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown and bubbling.

Let them cool down for about 10-15 minutes before serving. They are also good cold and they re-heated well the next day at about 180 degrees/gas 4 for 15 minutes. You may want to cover them loosely with foil so the cheese doesn’t brown too much.

A good sprinkle of parsley, some bread, and a mixed green salad make this a wonderful supper dish.