SOUTH AFRICAN VEGETABLE STEW RECIPES

Steps:

• Coat the beef in the flour. Heat a few tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the meat, a few pieces at a time, adding more oil as necessary. Transfer to a heavy casserole or a heavy, covered saucepan or Dutch oven. Add the onions to the skillet and cook over medium heat until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and coat the onions; transfer to the casserole. Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits; add to the casserole. Stir in the broth, salt, thyme, and bay leaf. Cook in the casserole in a 325° F oven for 4 hours, or in the saucepan or Dutch oven on the stovetop over low heat for about 2 1/2 hours. In either case, stir occasionally and add up to 1 cup of additional beef broth if necessary. Add the potatoes and carrots during the last hour of cooking, and the peas just before serving.To Freeze: Omit the peas. Let the stew cool, then ladle it into resealable freezer bags. Store for up to 3 months. To Reheat: Thaw the stew overnight in the refrigerator or thaw partially in the microwave. Warm in a covered saucepan over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, adding the peas during the last 5 minutes.

Steps:

• Season the flour with a good pinch of salt and pepper, then toss the beef in the seasoned flour to coat

  Cook the beef in batches in 1 tbsp of oil in a large frying pan over high heat, turning occasionally, for 5-10 minutes or until brown all over. Transfer to a slow cooker

  Cook the vegetables, garlic and mushrooms in the remaining oil in the pan over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes, until vegetables begin to brown. Stir in the herbs, tomato purée and chopped tomato and cook for a couple of minutes. Add to the beef in the slow cooker

  Pour in the stock and cook for 4 hours on high (or 6 hours on low), until the meat is very tender

  To make the dumplings, combine all the flour, suet and herbs in a bowl and add enough milk to just bring it together. Season with salt and pepper. Roll into 6-8 small balls

  Stir the stew, remove the bay leaves and season to taste

  Evenly top the surface of the stew with the dumplings. Cover and cook for an additional hour with the lid on

  Serve topped with the combined parsley and garlic if using.