Ingredients

• 4 Carrots, roughly cut.
• 2 Onions, roughly cut.
• 3 Stocks of celery, cut into 2 inch pieces.
• 2 Large potatoes, cubed into 2 inch pieces.
• 3 Cloves of garlic, minced.
• 3lb (or more...) of stewing beef, cubed into 2 inch pieces. We recommend a 50-50 mix of chuck and short rib, but any cheap, non-fancy, meat will do.
• 3 Tbsp of all-purpose flour.
• 1/2lb of smoked bacon (beef bacon works too), cut into 1 inch squares.
• 1 small can of tomato paste (5.5 oz).
• 2 litres of beef stock, preferably home made.
• 1 Can of Guiness.
• 1 Bunch of fresh thyme.
• 2 Bay leaves.
• Salt & black pepper, to taste.
• Olive oil (or any other animal fat) for searing the meat and veggies.

Tip: save veggie scraps in a ziploc bag. Put them in the freezer for beef stock later.

Preparation

1. In a mixing bowl coat the beef cubes with the flour. season generously with salt and pepper (1 Tbsp each)
2. Put a large dutch oven on medium heat, let it come to temperature. line the bottom with oil (or animal fat) and sear the beef. Reserve the browned meat in a bowl

Make sure not to overcrowd the dutch oven as we want to achieve a good sear on the meat.

3. Deglaze the bottom of the dutch oven with a little bit of Guiness mixed with a splash if stock to remove the fond.
4. Add more oil, reduce to medium low heat and add the onion, celery, carrot and potatoes. Add a teaspoon of salt and pepper. Let the water from the veggies evaporate and the onion become translucent. About 15 min.
5. Once the veggies are soft, add the tomato paste and garlic. Cook for a few minutes to remove the bitterness from the garlic.
6. Add the seared meat, beef stock, bay leaves and the rest of the Guiness into the dutch oven bring to a boil. Salt to taste. add other herbs if desired.
7. Bring everything to a boil. Let it simmer on low for 3 hours, covered. Mixing from time to time to avoid bits sticking to the bottom.
8. Uncover the dutch oven, let it simmer uncovered for an extra hour. Let the liquid evaporate to reach the consistency you desire (we like it thick!). At this point, the meat should fall apart but hold its shape (that's the queue to stop).