Every picture tells a story (or so they say). Well if that’s so, this picture tells a story of Ireland …

… and brown paper bags …

… in the beautiful Ring of Kerry …

… and of succulent tenderness …

… with homegrown beauties …

… and Irish family brewers …

… and a hot pan of steaming Irish stew.

Beef and Guinness Irish Stew

1 kg/2 lb rump or shin beef, cubed
50 g/2 oz plain flour, seasoned
sunflower oil
2 medium onions, thickly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
300 ml/ 1/2 pint beef stock
600 ml/ 1 pint Guinness

Roll the cubes of beef in the flour to lightly coat them, then brown them quickly in hot oil in a frying pan to seal them. Transfer to a large saucepan.

Soften the onions and garlic in the meat residue left in the frying pan, then add to the beef.

Add the potatoes, carrots, thyme, bay leaf and beef stock to the saucepan.

Deglaze the frying pan with the Guinness and add to the stew.

Bring the stew to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Lift the lumpy things out of the pan with a slotted spoon, then reduce the gravy to half the original volume over a high heat.

Pour the gravy over the meat and veg and serve.

(the broad beans came with us to Ireland from our garden in Devon … we had a glut before leaving and didn’t want to waste them …!)