A Lighter than Usual Beef Stew

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan on high heat and brown the beef all over for about 3 minutes.
1 Tbsp olive oil, 450 g stewing beef
Add the onion, garlic, ginger, carrots, leek, celery, peppercorns and bay leaf and stir well for about a minute, to coat the vegetables and aromatics in the beef fat.
1 large onion, 4 cloves garlic, 5 cm ginger, 2 large carrots, 1 large leek, 3 celery sticks, ½ tsp black peppercorns, 1 bay leaf
Add the flour and mustard and stir it in well, about 30 seconds.
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour, 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Add the cider and once again, stir to mix it all in. Let the cider come to boil and cook on high heat for a minute.
125 ml dry cider (optional)
Add the beef stock and bring to boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 1½ hours or so, until the meat is cooked and tender.
1 L beef stock
Stir in the Cumberland Sauce and check seasoning, add some salt, if needed.
3 Tbsp Cumberland Sauce, salt
Finish off with a flourish of freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately, garnished with the parsley.
freshly ground black pepper, 1 small handful fresh parsley