Prepare the vegetables by peeling and halving (if large or leave them whole if small) pearl onions, halving or quartering the mushrooms, peeling and slicing the carrots and dicing the garlic.

Prepare the smoked streaky bacon by cutting it into lardons.

Preheat a large pot over a medium heat, add bacon lardons and cook for a few minutes. Next add the mushrooms and continue to cook until you have some colour on the mushrooms, then at the onions continue to cook and finally at the carrot along with the garlic and continue to cook and stir for another minute or two.

Remove everything from the pan and set aside to cool ready for later.

Place the pot back onto a medium heat, if it's dry, then add a little oil or beef fat.

Add the beef being sure to not overcrowd the base of the pan, so work in batches if you have to. Taking your time to get deep colour on all sides of the beef (see video)

Once all of the beef is coloured, remove from the pan and set aside for a few moments.

Keeping a pan on a low heat, add a shot of Brandy or cognac

Let that heat for 30 seconds and add the red wine and reduce that by around half

Then at the beef stock, bring up to a boil and whisk in the beurre manié

Add all beef back into the pot, make sure it's simmering, place a lid on and put it in your oven set anywhere between 90c - 160c (see video)

Once you're at the stage where you're an hour away from being ready (see video). Bring the pan out of the oven assess how much liquid you have (see video). Then add the sautéed vegetables and bacon lardons from earlier, gently mix in. Lastly, at the thyme and bay leaves and continue to cook for one more hour either on the hob, in the oven with the lid on or in the oven with the lid off (see video)

Serve with really simple potatoes and enjoy.