If I had a photo, I would most certainly use it. That is... unless the photo I have sucks. For now, you'll just have to picture a big heaping helping of
2.5 lb beef chuck , boneless short rib or any other slow cooking beef, cut into approx 1 inch cubes
Kosher salt and black pepper
3 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
14 ounces pearl onions, defrosted or 1 large yellow onion diced medium
6 garlic cloves , minced
1/4 cup tomato paste
8 ounces crimini mushrooms, stem trimmed and halved
3 tbsp flour
1 bottle Guinness, stout or any dark beer
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
3 sprigs fresh thyme, or 2 teaspoons dried
2 bay leaves, if you have - if not don’t make urself nuts…it’ll be ok
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg beaten with a tablespoon of water
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Heat a heavy pot (that has a tight fitting lid) over medium heat and cook bacon until just getting crispy, remove bacon and set aside
Leave a couple tablespoons of bacon grease in the pot, and add beef
Sear in batches (so you don’t overcrowd) until good color develops on just the outsides – we’re not trying to cook them through – then remove from pot and finish remaining pieces – remove
Add carrots and cook a couple minutes, then add in the onion, stir to mix then put in the garlic, and when it’s really fragrant add the tomato paste
Mix really well and let cook a couple minutes
Sprinkle the flour over the top of everything and mix it in really well until everything things looks gross and super dry
Put in the mushrooms, beer, stock, cooked bacon, seared beef cubes and mix well to combine
Add the thyme and bay leaves if using, put on the lid and put in the oven for 2 hours
When it’s done, remove the lid, take out the thyme and bay leaves, and cook another 30ish minutes to thicken
You could totally eat this as a stew right now if you wanted, or to make a pie:
Let it cool completely, and put into a baking dish
Roll out the puff pastry to fit the dish, and place on the top, crimp or seal around the edges, then use a knife to make 4 or 5 vent holes
Turn the oven up to 400 degrees and bake approximately 30-40 minutes or until gorgeous
