I’ve read a lot about cooking with beer recently and seen some fabulous recipes so after being inspired by the arrival of a case of Chocolate beers from MyBreweryTap yesterday I decided to knock something up myself. Now I love all things chocolate and I also love chilli’s, I’ve tried chocolate and chilli together in sweet things like fine chocolates, cakes and such before but never in a savoury form, WITH BEER.
Anyway I knocked this up today in the slow cooker and tweaked it until I managed to get it looking and tasting as I’d imagined in my head this morning. It’s rich and luxurious and has that lovely chocolate smoothness with the after kick of scotch bonnet chilli. Modesty aside, it’s a bleedin’ triumph! 
Choca-Chilli Steak and Ale Casserole
1kg Lean casserole steak
Two desert spoons Cornflour (seasoned with salt and ground black pepper)
Two large Onions
Four Large Carrots
Three Parsnips
Half a Swede
A Medium Punnet of Chestnut Mushrooms
Two Scotch Bonnet Chilli’s (add more or less to your taste)
Two bottles of Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (or similar to your availability)
Two Heaped Tablespoons of Bournville Cocoa Powder (or equivalent)
Half a pint of Beef stock
Eight squares of high cocoa content chocolate. (I used Green & Blacks 85% dark)
One table spoon of extra virgin olive oil
Place seasoned cornflour in a large mixing bowl, add the steak and toss to coat each piece of meat.
Heat the oil and brown off the steak for a couple of minutes, add to pot
Chop the onions and root vegetables into large pieces (so they don’t disintegrate)
You can add others veggies as you wish. Add to the pot.
Pour over the beer and top up with stock until it comes to just below covering the steak and vegetables.
Mix the cocoa powder with a little water and add.
Add the chilli’s to taste.
(Tip if you don’t like it too spicy add the chilli’s whole without bursting the skin, that way you get all that chilli/capsicum flavour without the heat)
Slow cook on high until bubbling and then reduce, cook for 6-8 hours. I used a slow cooker but you could casserole this and in less time if required.
Approx half way through the cooking process add the dark chocolate and stir until melted.
The sauce should thicken to coat the back of a spoon and be dark rich brown… If it stays a little thin, ladle a large quantity into a separate pan and simmer until reduced to the right consistency then add back to the pot.
Serve with creamy mashed potato.
This recipe was one of my own making and was a little trial and error, the results were blooming marvellous though. Also it’s worth noting that I made a large amount, so if you want to make less just half the ingredients.
For an extra chocolate kick serve with a nice chocolate ale..enjoy
Beersay 