Beer-Free Flemish Carbonnade

📝 Ingredients

• 700 g braising beef in 4 cm cubes
• 4 brown onions (about 100 g each)
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil (1 for the beef, 1 for the onions, 1 for the chips)
• 1 tbsp plain flour (about 10 g)
• 1 beef stock cube + 600 ml hot water
• 2 tbsp soft brown sugar (about 25 g)
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 slices gingerbread (about 25 g each) + 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 bay leaves + 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 kg potatoes (about 5 medium)
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Cast-iron casserole dish with lid
• 2 baking trays + baking paper
• Cutting board and knife
• Wooden spatula
• Peeler
• Clean tea towel

📖 Steps

1. Pat the beef cubes dry with kitchen paper, then season with salt and pepper: wet meat boils instead of browning. Peel the onions, halve them and slice thinly.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in the casserole dish over a high heat. Sear the beef in 2 or 3 batches, without crowding the pieces, for 3 to 4 minutes per batch, turning them, until well browned. Set aside on a plate.
3. Lower to a medium heat, add 1 tbsp oil and the onions with a pinch of salt. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring and scraping up the browned bits from the bottom, until soft and nicely golden.
4. Return the meat and its juices to the casserole, sprinkle with the flour and stir for 1 minute. Add the brown sugar, vinegar, stock (cube dissolved in 600 ml hot water), bay leaf and thyme, then scrape the bottom.
5. Spread the gingerbread slices with mustard and lay them on the meat, mustard side down. Bring to a simmer: as it melts, the gingerbread will thicken the sauce and give it its distinctive flavour.
6. Cover and simmer for 2 hr 30 min over a very low heat, with just small bubbles. Stir every 30 minutes and add a little water if the sauce sticks. The meat is ready when it falls apart with a fork.
7. 45 minutes before the end, preheat the oven to 220 °C. Peel the potatoes, cut them into 1 cm-thick chips, rinse in cold water, then dry thoroughly in a clean tea towel.
8. Toss the chips with 1 tbsp oil and a pinch of salt, spread them in a single layer on the two trays lined with baking paper and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, turning them and swapping the trays halfway through, until golden.
9. Remove the bay leaf, taste the sauce and adjust the salt and pepper (a drop of vinegar if it's too sweet). Serve the carbonnade piping hot with the crispy chips.