“When one reads these strange pages of one long gone one feels that one is at one with one who once…”
James Joyce, Ulysses
Ingredients
800 g (1 lb 12 oz) braising beef, such as chuck, cut into 21/2 cm (1 inch) cubes
2 tablespoons plain (all-purpose) flour
60 ml (2 fl oz/1/4 cup) olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
400 g (14 oz) button mushrooms, stems removed
300 ml (101/2 fl oz) beef stock
250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) Guinness
2 teaspoons tomato paste (concentrated purée)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
375 g (13 oz) block ready-made butter puff pastry, thawed
1 egg, lightly beaten
Method
- Preheat oven to 200ºC (400ºF/Gas 6).
- Place the beef and flour in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Heat a little oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the beef, in batches, and cook until browned on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside
- Heat the remaining oil in the pan. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes or until softened. Add the mushroom and cook for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add the beef, stock, Guinness, tomato paste, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce to the pan, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to very low, cover and simmer for 60 minutes or until beef is fork tender. Divide among six 12 cm (41/2 inch), 400 ml (14 fl oz) capacity ramekins or ovenproof bowls and cool for 20 minutes.
- Roll out the pastry to 5 mm (14 inch) thick and cut into 6 squares to fit over the bowls. Brush the rims of the bowls with a little beaten egg, lay the pastry over and press to seal. Make a small slash in the pastry with a knife and brush with a little more beaten egg. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and puffed.
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