HOMEMADE STEW

Homemade stew has been a part of my family life for as long as I can remember. My Nana Helen made the most amazing stew, always making it on a Saturday evening as it was always better when it had been cooled and stored in the fridge overnight. The only downside to this was my Grandpa coming home from the club with a few drinks in him and eating half the pot of stew with buttered Scottish plain bread!
The recipe was continued by my mother who also makes the most amazing homemade stew. I have attempted to make the same recipe but somehow it is never quite the same but it's the next best thing.

HOMEMADE STEW

Ingredients:

0.7 kilos (or 1 1/2 lbs) of diced shoulder steak
0.7 kilos (or 1 1/2 lbs) of rump steak
6 skinless pork sausages ( you can use beef sausage and with skin but I prefer skinless pork as the flavour is better)
2 onions
2 carrots
tablespoon of butter
tablespoon of vegetable oil
2 tablespoons of Compton's Gravy Salt ( if you can not get Compton's the use 4 oxo cubes)
Gravy browning
crushed black pepper
water
plain flour

METHOD

Cut off the fat and residue from the diced shoulder steak. Do the same with the rump steak and then cut this in to pieces the same size as the diced shoulder steak. Tenderise the meat using a tenderising hammer. Pour some flour in to a bowl and put the tenderised meat in and coat well with the flour.
Peel and chop the onions and carrots. Using a large solid prying pan ( you can use a pot if you wish) put in the butter and the oil and place on to the stove over a medium heat. When the butter has melted put the carrots and onions in and fry them off for 2 - 3 minutes. Put the onions and carrots in to a large oven proof pot or casserole dish with a lid. Now add a little more butter and oil to the frying pan and start frying the meat until it starts to colour. Once coloured add the meat to the carrots and onions in the oven proof dish. Cut each sausage in to 3 pieces and add to the casserole dish.
Cover with water and slow cook in the oven for 3 to 4 hours at 180/gas mark 4, stirring occasionally and adding a little water if the stew is drying up.
After 3 to 4 hours remove from the oven and add 1 - 2 table spoons of gravy salt or 3 - 4 oxo cubes, also add around 1 -2 spoons of gravy browning, around a teaspoon of black pepper and small amount of salt. Stir well and replace the lid and return to the oven for a further 30 - 45 minutes.
You can either serve straight away or for best results allow to cool, store in the fridge overnight and re-heat before serving. You can re-heat either in the oven or on the hob.
Best served with mashed potatoes, seasonal veg and a puff pastry square or in a bowl with buttered crusty bread.