• Preheat an oven to 150°c/130°c fan (300°f/265°f).
• Next, cut the onions & celery into a medium dice & cut the carrots into a large dice (1-2cm in size). Mix the veg together & set aside.
• Pour the vegetable oil into a large saucepan & place over a high heat. Whilst the pan is heating up, season the short ribs all over with salt.
• Carefully place the short ribs into the hot oil & sear well on all sides.
• Once seared, remove the ribs from the pan, transfer to a plate & set aside.
• Add the diced veg into the pan & cook until softened, stirring almost constantly. This will take around 4-5 minutes.
• Stir in the grated garlic & cook for a further 30 seconds.
• Next, add in the tomato paste, stir to coat the veg then deglaze the pan with the Guinness.
• Add in the beef stock, the seared beef ribs & the herbs. Season with salt & pepper then bring to a simmer.
• Cover the pan with either a heatproof lid or foil then place in the preheated oven.

  Cook for 2-3 hours or until the beef is tender & starting to fall off the bones.
• Once cooked, remove the short ribs from the sauce & set aside.

  Pick out the bay leaves & any herb stalks from the sauce then set the pan over a medium heat & bring to a boil.
• In a bowl, stir together the cornflour & 2 tbsp of cold water. Pour into the sauce along with a couple of drops of gravy browning, mix to combine then cook out for 2-3 minutes.
• Stir in the Worcestershire sauce & season with salt & pepper then take the sauce off the heat.
• Pull the meat off the short ribs, discarding any bones & sinew then mix into the sauce with the chopped parsley. Transfer the stew into a large heatproof dish & set aside.

Parsley Dumplings

• Turn the oven up to 180°c/160°c fan (355°f/320°f).
• Place the self raising flour & salt into a mixing bowl then add in the butter. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
• Next, add in the suet & chopped parsley then mix to combine.

  Add in enough cold water to form a rough dough (start with 2 tbsp then add more if needed) then tip out onto a clean worksurface.
• Divide the dough into 6 pieces then roll into balls.
• Place the dumplings on top of the stew then transfer to the oven & cook for 20-25 minutes. The dumplings should be golden brown & the stew, piping hot.
• The stew is now ready & should be served immediately.