Ingredients

• 900g/2lb beef shin or stewing beef
• cut into 6 large chunks
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 150g/5½oz lardons or cubes of smoked bacon
• 10 button onions or shallots
• peeled
• 2 cloves garlic
• crushed flat
• 1 bay leaf
• bunch parsley
• stalks only
• sprig of thyme
• sprig of rosemary
• 3 cloves
• 10 peppercorns
• crushed
• 500ml/18fl oz red wine
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 10 chestnut mushrooms
• parsley leaves
• chopped
• to garnish
• 200g/7oz stale baguette or other bread (crust included)
• handful chopped parsley
• 250ml/9oz milk
• pinch of nutmeg
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 free-range egg
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• butter
• for frying

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2.
• Dust each piece of meat with flour. Heat the oil in a large casserole over a high heat and fry the meat in batches until browned. Remove each batch
• keeping the oil
• then fry the lardons
• onions and garlic in the same pan until golden brown. Add in the herbs and spices and return the meat to the pan. Add 300ml/10fl oz water
• the wine
• tomato paste
• sugar and salt. Scrape up the caramelised bits as they will add flavour.
• Cover
• place in the oven and cook for three hours or until the meat is tender and almost falling apart.
• Cut the baguette into small cubes and place in a bowl. Add the parsley. Bring the milk to a boil and pour over. Stir so that the milk is absorbed evenly
• then cover and leave for 15 minutes.
• Season with nutmeg
• salt and pepper
• stir in the egg
• and mix in one tablespoon flour. If the mix is too wet (it should be moist and only slightly sticky)
• add a second spoon of flour. Wet your hands a little to help stop the dough sticking to them
• then make 12-14 dumplings (smaller than a golf ball).
• About 20 minutes before the stew is ready
• add the mushrooms into the stew and season with salt to taste.
• Meanwhile
• heat a knob of butter in a large frying pan and fry the dumplings on a medium heat for five minutes or until golden-brown and crisp
• then drain.
• Garnish the stew with parsley and serve with the dumplings.