Beef and Guinness Casserole

A hearty winter casserole!

If you don’t fancy the taste of stout beer then substitute the Guinness with regular beer or beef stock.

Serves 4
Blade steak - 500g
Oil - 2 tbsp
Onions, peeled and chopped - 1 large
Minced garlic - 1 tsp
Flour - 2 tbsp
Guinness or beer - 1 cup
Water - 1 cup
Beef stock powder - 1 tsp
Bacon rasher, chopped - 2
Dried thyme - Pinch
Prunes - 6-9
Orange, grated rind - 2 tsp

Pre-heat the oven to 160º C.
Remove all visible fat from the meat and cut into 2cm cubes.
Heat the oil in a large frypan and brown the meat over a moderately high heat. Transfer to a casserole dish.
Add the onions to the pan and cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook a further minute. Sprinkle the flour over and stir well to coat the onions.
Mix together Guiness or beer, water and beef stock powder. Gradually pour into pan. Bring to the boil, stirring, to make a smooth sauce.
Pour mixture over the meat in the casserole dish. Mix in bacon, thyme, prunes and orange rind.
Cook in oven for 1 ½ - 2 hours or until the meat is fork tender.

Serving Suggestion: Serve with mashed or jacket potatoes and steamed green vegetables.