lobscouse (beef casserole)

a very hearty traditional beef stew 

Visiting Liverpool recently, I wondered at the origin of 'scouse' and 'scouser'.  Ian told me that a common Cumbrian dish is called scouser, a sort of dry stew.  Looking in to this, it seems to be a sailors' dish common around northern Europe (lapskaus in Norwegian, and labskaus

in German, although the dishes actually vary a lot) seemingly adopted by Liverpudlians in the 19th century, when the city was the biggest port in the world, and so popular that they got the nickname of the dish.  It is still popular in Liverpool, with variations throughout the north west of England.  Lamb is often used instead of beef.  This recipe is based on a version by the Hairy Bikers, with a few adaptations, and extremely tasty, hearty and simple to make. 

Traditionally served with good crusty bread and often also with pickled red cabbage, gherkins or beetroot (which is similar to the German version).

This would be a good way of using up leftovers, eg with roast beef just for the last 15 mins and the overall cooking time reduced to about 1½ hours.  The vegetables can also be varied to whatever you have to hand, to give a similar bulk. 

 

for 2 good sized portions

1 tbsp olive oil (I imagine dripping would be more authentic!)
450g stewing beef, chopped
1 medium onion, peeled, chopped
1 medium potato, sliced (peel left on if in good condition)
½ swede, peeled, chopped (or a turnip)
1 leek, trimmed, sliced into 2-3cm lengths
1 carrot, peeled, sliced ditto
small bunch of flat parsley, chopped
salt and generous helping of ground black pepper (say 1 teaspoon)
about 500ml beef stock

optional bread and pickles to serve as above

• Heat the oil/fat in a heavy bottomed casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the beef pieces and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until browned all over.
• Remove the beef and marrow bones from the pan and set aside on a warm plate.
• Add the chopped onion to the casserole the beef was cooked in. Fry in the pan juices for 1-2 minutes, or until softened.
• Stir in the potato and swede and continue to cook for a further 2-3 minutes.
• Add the chopped leek, carrot and parsley asalt and black pepper. Continue to cook for a further 1-2 minutes, or until just softened.
• Return the beef to the casserole, then pour over enough beef stock to just cover the casserole contents.
• Cover the casserole with a lid, then cook until the beef is tender.  Stir it up occasionally. (You could also transfer to an oven at 150°C.)  This will take about 2 ½ hours. The liquid should be greatly reduced so that the meat and veg are still succulent but there is not a lot of liquid when transferred to the plate (but don't overdo and burn it!)
• Serve with the crusty bread and pickle.