Beef Hotpot

Beef Hotpot, a hearty and nutritious meal made with tender beef that melts in the mouth, veggies and gravy, and topped with sliced potatoes. This one-pot meal goes down well with the whole family, making dinner time the best time of the day.

This dish is inspired by the famous Lancashire Hotpot, which traditionally was a stew cooked slowly over a low fire and consisted of mutton and onions topped with sliced potatoes. 

There are different variations of this classic dish, that has been adapted to today's taste and cooking techniques, but no matter what kind of meat you use, the end product is the same filling dish that can feed the whole family.

I absolutely love stews of all sorts, although the traditional beef stew will always be my favourite. Throw in any vegetables that you have around, and you get the best dinner you can possibly wish for.

And with colder days knocking at the door, comfort food is making its way back onto our tables again. And to me, a steaming bowl of hotpot is what happiness is all about in the cold season.

Jump to:

• How to make beef hotpot
• Expert tips
• Other beef recipes
• Beef Hotpot

How to make beef hotpot

There is no secret that I don't like mutton/lamb/goat or anything sheep related. That's just not for my taste buds and stomach. Beef on the other hand makes the best alternative, and this hotpot is just perfect the way it is.

• in a large pan, heat up the oil, add the butter and allow it to melt
• season the beef cubes with salt and butter, and brown it in batches
• remove from the pan and set aside
• add more butter if necessary, and fry the onions until soft, then throw in the peeled and chopped garlic and carrots, together with the browned beef
• pour over the beef stock/broth, add the bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and tomato puree, and gives it a good stir
• if your pan is not ovenproof, transfer everything to an ovenproof dish, and topped with the thinly sliced potatoes
• cover with kitchen foil, and cook in the oven for 50 minutes at 170 degrees Celsius (340 Fahrenheit), then remove the foil, increase the temperature to 200 degrees Celsius (390 Fahrenheit), and cook for a further 15 minutes until the potatoes become golden

Expert tips

For this dish I used rump steak, which is a tender meat and cooks a lot quicker than the traditional stewing beef cubes that are chewier, and have to be cooked slowly for longer in order to tenderise them.

If you do use the stewing beef, make sure you leave it to cook for at least 1 ½ hours until you remove the foil, if needed, leave it to cook for longer. The sliced potatoes act like a very good lid, so the steam doesn't escape, and the beef and vegetables can cook very well.

There is nothing worse than uncooked vegetables or chewy meat, so getting this hotpot right is crucial. If necessary, lower the temperature to cook it for longer, but that should be ok with the amount of stock used.

I used a mandolin to ensure all the potato slices have the same thickness, and they cook evenly, although a sharp knife could make a decent job too - just be careful how you handle that!

Other beef recipes

Fancy a more traditional stew? Why not try my Irish Beef Stew with Guinness? It's absolutely divine. Or my Beef Stew with Sweet Potatoes, which is a very good dish to try in Autumn.

Nothing beats a good soup in the cold season, and my Vegetable Beef Barley Soup is utter pleasure.

If you’ve liked my BEEF HOTPOT or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, and PINTEREST to see more delicious food and what I’m getting up to.