Beef stew with couscous and a fresh pea salad

What do you serve hungry guests whom you would prefer to spend time with rather than slave away in the kitchen?

I really like the option of stewed meat. It is a dish where the main chunk of the actual work can be done hours before and the results are delicious and tender.
For this meal I wanted to use northern African flavors. I served it with couscous (also done in five minutes) and a pea and feta salad, which was really simple to make.

Ingredients:
ca. 900 gr. beef ragout
ca. 4 tablespoons flour
seasonings
Vegetable oil of choice
3 onions, roughly chopped
1 lemon, just the peel, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, crushed
1 1/5 teaspoons cumin powder
2 teaspoons turmeric
3 plum tomatoes, diced
olives, roughly a handful
2 bay leaves
water
to serve:
toasted sesame seeds
fresh coriander

1. Season the flower with salt and pepper in a bowl. Then toss the chunks of beef in it to cover. Preheat your oven to 150°.
2. In a pan that is oven proof heat some oil (I seem to use groundnut oil for all frying around here) to medium to high heat and fry off the beef until brown. If your pan is not big enough, do this in batches. Take the meat out and put it aside.
3. Turn down the heat to medium and add more oil if necessary. Add the chopped onions and the spices. Let the mixture fry until the onions are slightly softened.
4. Add the beef, the tomatoes, the olives, the bay leaves and enough water to cover. Let it come to the boil, put the lid on it and move the pan into the oven for about 1,5 hours.
5. Before serving, take out and check if the sauce has the desired consistency (if too dry add a little water, if too watery cook on the stove top without the lid) and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Maybe add a bit of lemon juice. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and coriander immediately before serving or let the guests do this themselves...


The pea salad went well with this because it added freshness and a bit of zing. Here's how I made it:
Boil a pot of water and add some frozen peas (you'll only leave them in for ca. 4 minutes). Into the serving bowl, grate 1-2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced chili to taste a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice and chop 2-3 sprigs of mint. Drain the peas when they've come up to temperature, add them to the dressing and mix. Crumble over some feta and you're done. You don't need salt or pepper in this combination because of the feta, chili and garlic. Favorite new salad!