Rustic French Beef Stew

Process

1. Prep
   1. Halve or quarter the mushrooms depending on size.
   2. Dice the onion.
   3. Peel the shallots and halve or quarter them, keeping them chunky.
   4. Cut the carrots and potatoes into large stew-sized pieces.
   5. Tie the thyme and parsley stalks together if convenient, so they are easy to remove later.
2. Brown the mushrooms
   1. Heat the rapeseed oil in a large casserole over medium-high to high heat.
   2. Brown the mushrooms well, working in batches if necessary so they fry rather than steam.
   3. Remove and reserve.
3. Brown the meat
   1. Add the pancetta to the same casserole and cook until browned and crisp.
   2. Remove and reserve.
   3. Brown the beef thoroughly in batches, avoiding crowding the pan.
   4. Remove and reserve with the pancetta.
4. Build the stew
   1. Reduce to medium heat and add the diced onion. Cook for about 8–10 minutes until softened and beginning to colour.
   2. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
   3. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1–2 minutes, stirring, until slightly darkened.
   4. Add the red wine, scraping up the browned residue from the bottom of the casserole.
   5. Simmer until the wine has reduced by roughly one-third.
   6. Return the beef and pancetta to the casserole.
   7. Add the beef stock, water, bay leaves, thyme and parsley stalks.
5. Braise
   1. Bring just to a simmer, cover and transfer to a 150°C fan / 170°C conventional oven.
   2. Braise for approximately 2½–3 hours in total, until the beef is very tender.
   3. 60 minutes before the expected end, add the carrots and potatoes.
   4. 40 minutes before the end, add the shallots.
   5. 20 minutes before the end, stir in the browned mushrooms.
   6. If the stew becomes too dry during cooking, add a small amount of water.
6. Finish
   1. Remove the bay leaves, thyme and parsley stalks.
   2. Mash the butter and flour together thoroughly to make a beurre manié.
   3. With the stew gently simmering, stir in the beurre manié and cook for about 3 minutes, until the sauce has lightly thickened.
   4. Remove from the heat.
   5. Stir through the chopped parsley leaves and black pepper.
   6. Taste before adding any salt; the pancetta and regular beef stock may already provide enough.