Beef Stifado recipe (Greek beef stew)

Ingredients

For 5 servings

• 1 kg good-quality stewing beef, cut into portions (35 ounces)
• 1.5 kg pearl onions, peeled (60 ounces)
• 1/4 of a cup olive oil
• 3/4 of a cup red wine
• 3 tbsps red wine vinegar
• 1/3 of a cup cognac
• 2 ripe tomatoes (without skins) roughly chopped or tinned (400g) chopped tomatoes (14 oz)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 3-4 allspice berries
• a pinch nutmeg
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• A bit of water