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Donal Skehan
Beef Stew with Cheesy Cheddar Dumplings | DonalSkehan.com
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Beef Stew with Cheesy Cheddar Dumplings

September 22

Serious levels of warmth and comfort will be found bubbling beneath the lid of this winter warmer. The stew itself is best made in advance and the dumplings added before you are ready to serve. Use the best quality ingredients you can for this dish to really make it sing.

  • serves Serves 4
  • time 3.5 hours

Method

  1. 1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 . Heat the olive oil in a large casserole pan over a medium high heat, while it is heating, cut the beef in four large pieces, toss the beef in the flour and season well with salt and pepper.
  2. 2. Add the beef and fry until brown on all sides. Do this in batches if needs be. Remove and set aside.
  3. 3. Add the onion, carrot, garlic and thyme and sauté for 5-6 minutes until softened without much colour.
  4. 4. Add the red wine, using the wooden spoon to remove any residue on the base of the pan and allow to reduce almost by half before returning the beef to the pan with the stock. Cover and put in the oven for 1 hours 30 mins or until tender.
  5. 5. When it has almost finished cooking, make the dumplings. Add the flour, parsley and butter to a large bowl with the cheddar. Using your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour. Season well and gradually add the milk into the mix. Tip out onto a flour surface and knead a little before rolling into a sausage shape. Divide into 12 pieces and shape using lightly floured hands to make balls.
  6. 6. Shred the beef a little and stir through the sauce.
  7. 7. Arrange the dumplings on top, leaving a little gap between each. Cover and place in oven to cook for 30 minutes until the dumplings have risen, remove the lid and cook for another 15 minutes until they’re golden.

Ingredients

For the stew: 

2 tbsp olive oil 

1.6lb beef flank or bavette 

2 tbsp plain flour 

1 onion, sliced 

2 large carrots, peeled and diced 

3 garlic cloves, sliced 

2 thyme sprigs 

1 cup red wine 

3 cups beef stock 

For the dumplings: 

2 cups self raising flour 

2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped 

1 stick butter 

¼ cup cheddar, grated 

½ cup milk 

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 

For the stew: 

2 tbsp olive oil 

750g beef flank or bavette 

2 tbsp plain flour 

1 onion, sliced 

2 large carrots, peeled and diced 

3 garlic cloves, sliced 

2 thyme sprigs 

200ml red wine 

750ml beef stock 

For the dumplings: 

250g self raising flour 

2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped 

100g butter 

50g cheddar, grated 

100ml milk 

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper