Winter food

Pot au feu described by Chef Raymond Blanc as "the quintessence of French family cuisine, it is the most celebrated dish in France. It honours the tables of the rich and poor alike".

So cheap and easy to make, In the oven, on the stove on the fire or in the slow cooker. 

The meat is belly of Beef, I buy it when ever I see it on promotion throughout the year, and freeze it until the winter.

€2.30 a kilo bought back in October

.This isn't diet food, the beef is fatty, I cut the strings off and cut out the bigger chunks of fat, but don't trim it to much.

Use any vegetables you have, potatoes, carrots, leeks, cabbage, turnips, any veg to help bulk it out, cut the beef into large chunk, put the lot in the saucepan, cover with beef stock, add any herbs, sage, bay leaf etc, and simmer for up to 12 hours in the slow cooker, its cooked when the meat is tender.

This one is in my slow cooker, possibly the favourite of my kitchen gadgets.

But I have cooked it on the wood burner before, I started it simmering on the stove top then moved.

As soon as its cooked I will post another photograph, but this stew on here will last two of us at least 3 days. I may blend it down on day 3 to make a soup.

Talking of soup, as I was cutting the vegetables up for the stew I did a few extra carrots and leeks, I put them in a saucepan, with a couple of cloves of garlic and simmered the veg in chicken stock.

When the veg is cooked, blend it all together.

I'm going to add coriander but this is up to you.