A warming Spiced Beef and Autumn Vegetable recipe taken from Four Seasons Cookbook. Meltingly tender, slow-cooked beef with chunks of golden vegetables and warming spices make this an ideal dish to serve up when the nights are drawing in.
Ingredients
Vegetable oil 2 tbsp
Onions 2, peeled and sliced
Carrots 2 large, peeled and sliced
Garlic 2 cloves, peeled and crushed
Ground coriander 2 tsp
Ground cumin 2 tsp
Ground ginger 2 tsp
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Beef shin 900g (2lb), cut into pieces
Cinnamon stick 1
Beef stock 1 litre (1¾ pints), hot
Pumpkin or squash 500g (1lb 2oz), cut into pieces
Dried apricots 250g (9oz)
Clear honey 1 tbsp
Couscous and chopped coriander or mint to serve
Directions
Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onions, carrots and garlic for 5 minutes until lightly browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables to a slow cooker pot. Put the lid on and switch the cooker on to the low setting.
Mix the ground spices together with salt and pepper and mix into the beef. Reheat the frying pan juices and cook the beef, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until browned all over.
Transfer the beef to the slow cooker, add the cinnamon stick and pour over the stock. Put the lid back on and cook on the low setting for 7 hours.
Stir in the pumpkin, cover and cook for a further 2 hours. Stir in the apricots and honey, cover and cook for a further hour until everything is tender.
To serve, ladle over steamed couscous and sprinkle with chopped coriander or mint.