SURREY ROCKS - NOV/DEC 2026 - Magazine - Page 28
NEWS
RECIPE
JOOL’S FAVOURITE
BEEF STEW
METHOD:
Jamie Oliver’s root vegetable-based
beef stew is one of his wife’s favourite
recipes. Healthy and full of goodness,
this is a perfect Winter warmer recipe
the whole family will love. Jamie says,
“The great thing about this stew is
that it gets put together very quickly,
and this is partly to do with the fact
that no time is spent browning the
meat. Even though this goes against
all my training, I experimented with
two batches of meat – I browned one
and put the other straight into the pot.
The latter turned out to be the sweeter
and cleaner-tasting, so I’ve stopped
browning the meat for most of my
stews these days.” Enjoy with creamed
garlic mash or sour dough bread for
dipping.
INGREDIENTS:
(Serves 4)
• Olive oil
• 1 knob butter
• 1 onion: peeled and chopped
• A handful of fresh sage leaves
• 3/4 pounds stewing steak or beef
skirt: (800 g) cut into 5cm/2 inch
pieces
• Sea salt and freshly ground black
pepper
• Flour: to dust
• 2 parsnips: peeled and quartered
• 4 carrots: peeled and halved
• 1/2 butternut squash: halved,
deseeded and roughly diced
• Optional: a handful of Jerusalem
artichokes
• 500 grams small potatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato purée
• 1/2 bottle red wine
• 1/2 pint beef or vegetable stock
• Zest (of 1 lemon) finely grated
• Handful rosemary leaves, picked
• 1 clove garlic: peeled and finely
chopped
(Takes 3-4 Hours)
1. Preheat the oven to 160ºC/300ºF/
gas 2. Put a little oil and your knob of
butter into an appropriately sized pot
or casserole pan. Add your onion and
all the sage leaves and fry for 3 or 4
minutes.
2. Toss the meat in a little seasoned
flour, then add it to the pan with all the
vegetables, the tomato purée, wine and
stock, and gently stir together.
3. Season generously with freshly
ground black pepper and just a little salt.
Bring to the boil, place a lid on top, then
cook in the preheated oven until the
meat is tender.
4. Sometimes this takes 3 hours,
sometimes 4 – it depends on what cut
of meat you’re using and how fresh it
is. The only way to test is to mash up a
piece of meat and if it falls apart easily
it’s ready.
5. Once it’s cooked, you can turn the
oven down to about 110°C/225°F/gas ¼
and just hold it there until you’re ready
to eat.
6. The best way to serve this is
by ladling big spoonfuls into bowls,
accompanied by a glass of French red
wine and some really fresh, warmed
bread.
7. Mix the lemon zest, chopped
rosemary and garlic together and
sprinkle over the stew before eating. Just
the smallest amount will make a world
of difference – as soon as it hits the hot
stew it will release an amazing fragrance.
WINE MATCH
Making stews like this hearty recipe from Jamie Oliver is an excuse to break out the
full-bodied red wines. A Pinot Noir or a dark and fruity Bordeaux like the Chateau Fantin
Bordeaux Superieur would be a great option.
Cabernet Sauvignon or a Merlot would be a good alternative as they both contain
sufficient tannins to counter the rich taste of the stew. For those wine novices out there,
tannins are the compounds found in all red wines and they come mostly from the grapes’
skins and seeds, as well as from the barrels in which the wine was aged. They give wine
ageing potential and are an essential part of a wine’s structure and balance. Enjoy!
28 SURREYROCKS | ISSUE 56
