Every home cook should have a classic beef stew recipe in their repertoire, and this dish, topped with light suet dumplings is our best version yet. It's highly addictive and you will make it over and over during the colder months.
Serve with buttered seasonal greens and we guarantee there will be clean plates all round.
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Yields:
6 serving(s)
Prep Time:
25 mins
Cook Time:
3 hrs 15 mins
Total Time:
3 hrs 40 mins
Cal/Serv:
526
Ingredients
For the stew
2Tbsp.
vegetable oil
1
onion, roughly chopped
1
.2kg braising steak, cut into roughly 4cm chunks
plain flour, to dust
2
medium parsnips, cut into 2.5cm pieces
2
medium carrots, cut into 2.5cm pieces
1
large leek, cut into 1cm slices
3Tbsp.
tomato purée
200ml
red wine
600ml
beef stock
3
fresh rosemary sprigs
For the dumplings
125g
self-raising flour
60g
suet
1Tbsp.
dried parsley
Directions
Step 1
Preheat oven to 160°C (140°C fan) mark 3. Heat the oil in a medium-large casserole (that has a tight-fitting lid) and gently fry the onion for 5min until softened.
Step 2
Meanwhile, dry the beef pieces with kitchen paper and dust with the plain flour (tapping off excess). Add to the onion pan along with the vegetables, the tomato purée, wine, stock, rosemary and some seasoning (the meat and veg should just be covered with liquid, if not top up with more stock or water). Turn up the heat, bring to the boil, cover and put into the oven. Cook until the beef is tender - about 3hr.
Step 3
30min before the beef is due to be ready, make the dumplings. Sift the flour into a large bowl and stir in the suet, parsley and lots of seasoning. Add 100ml cold water and stir to make a soft (and slightly sticky) dough.
Step 4
Carefully take the casserole out of the oven, remove the lid and discard the rosemary sprigs. Check the seasoning of the stew. Pinch off walnut-sized pieces of the dumpling dough, gently roll into a ball and place on top of the stew, spacing apart. Return to the oven (without a lid) for the final 30min of cooking (or until the dumplings are lightly golden). Check the seasoning and serve with mashed potatoes, if you like.
GH TIPS:
There's no need to brown the beef in advance, making it a hands-off meal with maximum results. If you'd like to brown the meat, you can do so beforehand.
Don't want to use beef? Feel free to swap with another cut like lamb or pork if you'd prefer.
Not keen on dumplings on top? You could add thin slices of potato and cook until they are golden and crisp.
Freeze ahead: Prepare to end of step 2, then allow to cool completely. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for up to a month. To serve, defrost overnight in the fridge. Empty back into the casserole and bring to the boil on the hob. Meanwhile make the dumpling mixture. Top the stew with the dumplings and put into an oven preheated to 160°C fan (140°C fan) mark 3 for 30min (or until the dumplings are lightly golden).
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
