Michael Kelly’s Sausage and Beer Stew
So many of my recipes at this time of the year focus on the available root crops that I have either in the ground or in storage, such as carrots, parsnips, celeriac and beets. You could use celery instead of celeriac, swede instead of squash, etc.
SERVES
4
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
10
MINUTES
COOKING TIME
30
MINUTES
Ingredients
olive oil
6-8 good-quality dinner sausages
2 onions, diced
1 leek, trimmed and finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 large carrots, diced
1/2 celeriac, diced
1 x 330ml (11fl oz) bottle of beer
500ml (18fl oz) beef or chicken stock
400g (14oz) tin of tomatoes or 2 tablespoons tomato purée
2 tbsp chopped herbs (parsley, rosemary and thyme)
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp mustard (I use Dijon)
1/4 squash or pumpkin, peeled and chopped into large chunks
salt and pepper
crusty bread or baked potatoes, to serve
Method
Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan. Cut the sausages into chunks and fry them for a minute or so on each side, until browned.
In the same frying pan, fry the onions, leek, garlic, carrots and celeriac on a gentle heat for about 10 minutes, until soft. Transfer to a heavy saucepan or casserole.
Pour the bottle of beer into the frying pan to deglaze the pan, scraping any nice brown bits off the pan with a wooden spatula. Bring to the boil and let it simmer for about 10 minutes to reduce down a little. Add it to the veg with the stock, tomatoes, herbs, bay leaf and mustard.
Bring to the boil and then add the squash or pumpkin. Cook for 15 minutes with the lid on.
Add the sausages to the saucepan and cook for another 15 minutes.
Taste and season with salt and pepper. Check the consistency - leave to simmer for another 10 minutes if it needs to be thickened or add a little boiling water if it's too thick.
Serve with crusty bread or baked potatoes.
