Serving size: Serves 4
Cuisine type: Modern Australian
Cooking time: More than 2 hours
Course: Main
Favourite flavours: Beef, Easy recipes
Convenience recipes: four or less

Real Living recipe for beef and bourbon stew with polenta.

INGREDIENTS

3 tbsp olive oil
1 large brown onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled & sliced
3 celery stalks, trimmed & sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp finely chopped rosemary
¼ cup plain flour
Sea salt & cracked black pepper
750g diced chuck steak
½ cup bourbon
2 cups beef stock
1 cup tomato passata
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp sugar
1 cup instant polenta
80g butter, chopped
Half a bunch of chives, chopped
Handful flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped roughly, to serve

Equipment
Sharp knife
Chopping board
Large ovenproof saucepan or metal baking dish
2 medium mixing bowls
Wooden spoon
Medium saucepan
Whisk

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Heat half the olive oil in large saucepan or baking dish over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot and celery, and cook for 6 mins. Add garlic and rosemary, cook for a further 2 mins, then transfer to bowl and set aside.

Brown beef Add remaining oil to pan. Season flour well with salt and pepper, add beef and toss to coat. Brown in hot oil in 2 batches for a few mins each (you may need to add a little more oil in between batches). Deglaze pan with bourbon, scraping bottom of the pan to release any sediment.

Add stock, passata, bay leaves and sugar to pan. Return vegetables to pan and bring to boil. Transfer to oven and cook stew for 1 hr.

Cook polenta After 1 hr, bring 3 cups water to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add polenta in a steady stream while whisking. Cook for about 1 min until thickened. Remove from heat and stir through butter and chives. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Remove stew from oven and season. Dollop large spoonfuls of polenta on top of stew, return to oven for 30 mins and cook until polenta is crispy on top. (Some of the polenta will melt into the sauce and thicken it slightly, while the polenta that stays above the liquid will become nice and crispy on the outside.)

Serve Sprinkle with parsley and sea salt, then tuck in!