Kerry Beef is both tender and meaty and is the perfect foil for Carraig Dubh porter from the West Kerry Brewery.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
450g Kerry stewing beef, cut into 1″ cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, cut into small chunks
1/2 stick celery, finely sliced
½ teaspoon dried fennel
3 sprigs thyme
Zest and juice of 1 orange
500ml porter
2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped
2 sprigs of fresh thyme to garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/ Gas 4 for 20 minutes.
2. Season the beef lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper and set aside.
3. Place a tablespoon of rapeseed oil with the onion, garlic, carrot and celery in a heavy oven-proof casserole and cook over gentle heat for 10 minutes until soft and lightly coloured. Add the dried fennel, stir and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add the beef, thyme, zest and juice of the orange and the porter. Stir to remove the sticky bits at the bottom of the casserole.
5. Place the casserole in the oven with the lid on and bake for 2 and a half to 3 hours, or until the meat is melting. Stir from time to time, adding a little water if necessary. Remove the lid from the casserole for the last half hour of cooking so the sauce can reduce and thicken.
6. Stir in the tomatoes ten minutes before the end of cooking. Garnish the stew with a few sprigs of fresh thyme and serve.
WHERE TO SOURCE KERRY INGREDIENTS
You’ll find a directory of producers here where you can find the products to use in this recipe. For the beer from The West Kerry Brewery, click here. For Kerry beef, which is the finest beef in the world in our opinion, visit any Kerry butcher – see our list of Kerry meat producers and Kerry butchers here.
