Makes 1/2 pint (300 ml)
2 streaky bacon rashers or bacon trimmings
1 oz (25g) white cooking fat
1 medium-sized onion
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
1 oz (25g) plain flour
1 teaspoon concentrated tomato puree
1 pint (600ml) beef stock
1 bay leaf
few chopped mushroom stalks (optional)
2 tablespoons dry sherry
salt and freshly milled pepper
Finely chop the bacon. Melt the cooking fat in a saucepan over low heat, add the bacon and fry gently until bacon fat runs. Meanwhile, peel the onion and carrot, trim the celery and cut the vegetables in small dice (extracts more flavour). Add the vegetables to the saucepan and cook gently for about 10 minutes until the onion is tender and golden. Stir in the flour and cook gently for a further 20 minutes â this is a slowly-made sauce â stirring occasionally, until the flour is a rich nutty brown colour.
Stir in the tomato puree and draw the pan off the heat. Stir in the stock and add the bay leaf and chopped mushroom stalks, if using them. Bring to the boil, stirring all the time to make a smooth sauce, then cover with a pan lid and simmer gently for 40 minutes. Strain the sauce, stir in the sherry and season with salt and pepper. Reheat if necessary. This sauce is delicious served over fried chicken, steak or liver.
Variation: Add 2-3 oz (50-75g) sliced mushroom caps which have been lightly fried in butter.