Compliments to the chef

[Peasant Phill]

Flemish beef stew (traditional belgian recipe) (for 2 persons)

500 grams of beef stew meat, cut into medium sized cubes
salt
pepper
butter
a bottle of dark table beer (I use Piedboeuf, don't know if you have an equivalent abroad; just take any dark beer with low alcohol percentage that has a sweet, fruity taste (the beer has to be sweet, otherwise the sauce will be too bitter)) or Kriek beer
3 leaves of dried bay laurel
thyme (a tablespoon)
2 slices of bread
3 onions
2 tablespoons of flour
20 centiliter of milk
mustard
1 table spoon of brown sugar


1) Cut the onions in little pieces (but not too little) or ringshop them
2) Melt the butter, brown the meat and add salt and pepper
3) remove the meat
4) add the (ringshopped) onion and the flour and fry slowly for a minute or three.
5) do the meat back into the pan, together with the bay leaves and the thyme;
6) pour in the beer (start with about 30 centiler (0,3 liter)
7) put it on low fire and let sudder for about an hour, an hour and a half;
8) slather the slices of bread with mustard and put them on top, mustard side down.
9) let it cook for another 30 minutes, mix it from time to time;
10) let it cook for a long while, say 2 hours, you want the meat to get very tender;
11) about 30 minutes before it's ready, stir well, the bread will bind the sauce.
12) 5 minutes before it's ready, pour in the milk and mix a bit

Always keep an eye on the pan and add some extra water or beer if needed.


Serve with fries and lettuce with mayonnaise. The dish is traditionnally accompanied by beer (doesn't have to be the same as the on you used for the sauce).