Slow-Cooked Red Wine & Beef Stew

with Jasmine Rice & Steamed Dumplings

There are meals you cook because you’re hungry…and then there are meals you cook because you want the house to smell like comfort.

This slow-cooked red wine & beef stew falls firmly into the second category. It’s rich, deeply savoury, and unashamedly old-fashioned. The kind of supper that takes its time, bubbles gently on the stove, and rewards patience with tender meat and a sauce you’ll want to mop up until the very last drop.

Served with fluffy jasmine rice and soft, golden steamed dumplings, this is proper comfort food. The sort of meal that makes you slow down, pour a glass of wine, and sit at the table a little longer than usual.

Ingredients

(Serves 4–6)

For the stew:

• 1.2 kg beef chuck or stewing beef, cut into large chunks

• Salt & black pepper

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 1 large onion, finely chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, crushed

• 2 tbsp tomato paste

• 2 tbsp flour

• 2 cups dry red wine

• 2 cups beef stock

• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 tsp dried thyme (or a few fresh sprigs)

• 250 g mushrooms, halved

• 3 large carrots, peeled and chunked

For the dumplings:

• 2 cups self-raising flour

• Pinch of salt

• 2 tbsp butter, grated or rubbed in

• ¾ cup milk (approx.)

  
  

To serve:

• Jasmine rice, cooked and fluffy

Method

1. Brown the beef

Season the beef generously with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based pot over medium-high heat and brown the beef in batches until well coloured. Don’t rush this step, the flavour starts here. Remove and set aside.

2. Build the base

Lower the heat slightly and add the onion to the same pot. Cook until soft and golden, scraping up all the flavour from the bottom. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.

Stir in the tomato paste and flour and cook for 1–2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.

3. Deglaze & slow cook

Pour in the red wine, stirring well to loosen everything from the bottom of the pot. Let it simmer for a few minutes, then add the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, thyme, and browned beef.

Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook on low heat for 2 to 2½ hours, stirring occasionally, until the beef is meltingly tender.

4. Add vegetables

About 30 minutes before serving, add the mushrooms and carrots. Let them cook gently until soft and soaked with flavour.

Taste and adjust seasoning.

Steamed Dumplings

In a bowl, mix the flour and salt. Rub in the butter, then add milk gradually until you have a soft dough.

Using a spoon, drop small dumplings gently onto the surface of the simmering stew. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and steam for 15–20 minutes without lifting the lid. This is key for light, fluffy dumplings.

To Serve

Spoon the rich stew over bowls of jasmine rice, making sure everyone gets plenty of sauce, carrots, mushrooms, and at least one dumpling (or two — no judgement).

Serve with a glass of the same red wine used in the pot and enjoy the quiet satisfaction that comes from a meal well made.

Final Thoughts

This is the kind of supper that fills the house with the best smells, warms you from the inside out, and reminds you why slow cooking is worth it.

Simple. Hearty.

Made to be shared.