I soften chopped onion and put it in a slow cooker, then cube the meat and toss it in flour, seasoned with salt, pepper and mustard powder, then fry it in batches until browned, and add to the onion with some thickly sliced carrots.
Then I deglaze the pan with a bottle of dark ale, scraping in all the meat juices and flour, and reduce it slightly, before pouring it over the meat and veg in the slow cooker, and cook it for four hours or until it is very tender. In winter, I sometimes add in a few vacuum packed chestnuts at this stage.
Then I taste to see if the seasoning is right, adding more if necessary, and I thicken it with Bisto powder (not the granules) mixed with a bit of cold water if it needs it, then top with puff pastry that I have pre-cooked so that it doesn't go soggy on top of the gravy.
I'm feeling hungry now ?