Beef Ragout with Cheddar Herb Dumplings

Comfort food at it's finest. Perfect for Sunday lunch, this slow-cooked beef ragout with herbed cheddar dumplings is hearty and brimming with flavour.

Begin by dicing the bacon and place into a Le Creuset Signature Shallow Casserole over a medium heat. Once crispy, take out the bacon and set aside, reserving the oil/fat for the beef.

Season the beef with salt and pepper and on a high heat fry in the casserole with the hot bacon fat in portions. Once cooked, remove and set aside in a bowl.

Fry the onion, celery and carrot cubes in the same dish, adding a little oil if necessary. Finally add the garlic and sauté until translucent.

Add the bay leaf and thyme and stir in the tomato paste.

Pour in the red wine and Worcestershire sauce and bring to the boil.

Place the fried beef ragout back into the roaster and fill up with the beef broth.

Bring to the boil again and continue to cook covered for 1½ hours on a low heat, and then add the potato cubes and let simmer for another ½ hour.

Remove the bay leaf and the thyme sprigs. If the sauce of the ragout is still too thin, stir the starch with a little cold water until smooth, and then add to the sauce and bring to the boil.

Fold in the finely chopped mushrooms and diced bacon.

Begin making the dumplings.

 

For the Cheddar Herb Dumplings:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan /Gas Mark 4.

For the dumplings, mix flour with baking powder and add the clarified butter in small cubes and mix with the flour. Add the grated Cheddar cheese and milk and knead everything into a dough.

Shape the dough into 6-8 dumplings, spread them in a circle with a little space between them on the ragout. Bake the dumplings in the preheated oven without a lid for about 30 to 40 minutes until the dumplings are nicely browned and baked through.

Sprinkle the stew with parsley and serve.