Sandra's Beef Stew

50g plain flour 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1kg oyster blade steak, cut up into smallish pieces 

6 tablespoons vegetable oil 

2 onions, sliced 

3 garlic cloves, chopped 

1 tbsp tomato paste 

4 carrots, roughly chopped 

2 kg small round potatoes 

handful sliced mushrooms 

450ml beef stock 

1 tbsp apricot or plum jam 

Place the flour in a bowl or in a plastic bag with plenty of salt and black pepper and toss the meat in it until well coated.

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole and add the beef. Fry until browned on all sides. You may need to do this in batches as you don’t want to overcrowd the pan; it is important to just brown the beef and not stew it. Remove the meat from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the onions, tomato paste, garlic and carrots to the pan and fry for 5 minutes until softened a little.

Return the meat to the pan and add half the stock. Bring to the boil and bubble for 4-5 minutes, until reduced by about a third, then add the remaining stock, potatoes and mushrooms. Bring back to the boil then cover and simmer on a low heat for about two hours or until tender. If preferred, you can place the dish in a preheated oven at 150C/130C fan/gas 2 to cook for the same amount of time. 

Add the jam and continue to cook for a further 30 minutes or until the meat is meltingly tender.

This can be cooked the day before, chilled in the fridge and reheated.

Alternately, leave out the potatoes and serve with mashed potato.

If you want to thicken the sauce further, mix 1 tablespoon of plain flour with 2-3 tablespoons of cold water to make a thin paste, and add gradually to the boiling sauce until thickened to your liking.