Smoky beef & black bean stew with cornbread dumplings
Use a slow cooker to make this beef and bean stew – the cornbread dumplings make it an extra comforting dinner. Add in extra chipotle paste if you’re a fan of spice
- Prep:30 mins
Cook:5 hrs 30 mins
- Serves 4
- Easy
Nutrition per serving
- kcal 642
- fat 24g
- saturates 11g
- carbs 55g
- sugars 0g
- fibre 14g
- protein 44g
- salt 2.06g
Ingredients
- 500g braising beef , diced
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tbsp chipotle paste
- 1 tbsp sweet smoked paprika
- 1 red onion , finely chopped
- 2 peppers , roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves , crushed
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- pinch of sugar
- 500ml beef stock
- 2 x 400g cans black beans , drained and rinsed
- handful of coriander chopped, to serve
- 75g instant/quick cook cornmeal (polenta)
- 75g self-raising flour
- ½ tbsp sugar
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 egg
- 175ml buttermilk
- 50g butter , melted
Method
Pat the beef dry and toss in the flour and plenty of seasoning until well coated. Add to the bowl of your slow cooker, or a casserole dish along with the chipotle paste, paprika, red onion, peppers, garlic, tomato purée, sugar and beef stock. If cooking in the slow cooker, cover and cook on high for 5 hrs, or until the beef is tender. If making in the oven, cover and cook at 170C/150C fan/gas 3 for 2 hrs, topping up with extra stock or water, if needed.
To make the dumplings, mix the cornmeal, flour, sugar, bicarb and ½ tsp salt in a bowl. In a jug whisk together the egg, buttermilk and melted butter until combined. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry.
Stir the black beans into the stew along with a large pinch of salt. Spoon the dumpling mixture on top of the stew in 5-6 large dollops (they’ll spread, but don’t worry). Return to the oven uncovered or recover the slow cooker and cook for 30 mins, until the dumplings have puffed up.
Divide the stew between four bowls and sprinkle over some coriander to serve.
