Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Dumplings
Ingredients:
For the stew:
1 kg (2.2 lbs) stewing beef, cubed
2 tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
2 potatoes, diced
2 celery stalks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
500ml (2 cups) beef broth
400g (1 can) diced tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
2 bay leaves
For the dumplings:
150g (1 1/4 cups) self-raising flour
75g (1/3 cup) suet or butter, grated
1/2 tsp salt
3–4 tbsp cold water
Instructions:
Toss the beef in flour, salt, and pepper. Heat oil in a pan and brown the beef in batches. Transfer to the slow cooker.
Add onion, carrots, potatoes, celery, and garlic to the slow cooker.
Pour in the beef broth, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves. Stir well.
Cover and cook on low for 7–8 hours or high for 4–5 hours, until the beef is tender.
To make the dumplings, mix flour, suet (or butter), and salt. Gradually add water to form a dough. Shape into small balls.
Remove bay leaves from the stew, then drop dumplings on top. Cover and cook on high for 30–40 minutes until dumplings are fluffy.
Serve warm.