Heat some of the lard, dripping, or oil in a large, heavy-based, oven-safe pan and heat until shimmering. Season the beef with salt and cook in batches until lightly browned all over. Cook the beef in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan and creating too much moisture. Once seared, set aside and reserve until later.
Heat some more lard/dripping/oil in the same pan and add the onions, carrots, leeks and celery. Cook on a medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes until the vegetables are lightly caramelised, stirring occasionally.
Add the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, sugar, mustard and a generous pinch of salt. Increase the heat and cook for another minute or two, stirring often, until the garlic is fragrant but not burnt.
Pour the wine into the pan and increase the heat. Cook until the wine has reduced by approximately two-thirds. Add the beef back to the pan, then top with beef stock. Season with lots of freshly cracked black pepper and add a generous splash of Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce.
Bring to the boil, cover, and reduce the heat to simmer for 2 hours, or until the beef is soft. Stir occasionally.
(Alternatively, cook in an oven preheated to 160C/Gas 3 for 3-4 hours).
To make the dumplings, combine the flour, suet, salt and a handful of grated cheese in a large mixing bowl. Use your hands to mix in a little bit of water at a time, until a dough begins to form. You’ll want the dough to have small specks of suet in it, otherwise it will be overworked.
Use your hands or a spoon to form the dough into small spheres about the size of golf balls, then place each dumpling onto the surface of the stew, once the beef is soft.
Use a spoon to drizzle some of the stew’s gravy over the dumplings and sprinkle some more cheese, then transfer the pan to the oven and cook the stew and dumplings, uncovered, at 180C/Gas 4 for around 20 minutes, or until the dumplings are cooked through and slightly crispy, like scones.
