Meat and potatoes with a good bottle of red. Served with crusty French baguettes to mop up the luscious red wine sauce and that's Sunday lunch, sorted. What better way to celebrate Father's day this weekend than with a hearty red wine beef stew? Slow braised until the meat is spoon-tender and the sauce, thickened. Topped with gruyere and potato gratin, this beef hot-pot is for all meat loving South Africans. Particularly the dads! There's something special about weekend food that sets it apart from midweek suppers. A low and slow beef hot-pot that steadily makes its way to the finish line, with meltingly tender meat and a deeply flavoursome sauce. Allowing the oven to do all the work is clever cooking and will free you up for a couple of leisurely hours. At a recent lunch, the conversation turned towards food, more specifically our favourite types of food. For the women, vegetable-rich dishes were top of the list, while for the men, meat and potatoes dominated. As with most stews and curries, this beef stew benefits from being made the day before. The flavours definitely improve overnight. I've topped the meat with par-boiled waxy potatoes and a scattering of gruyere cheese. If you prefer, puff pastry is a lovely alternative to the potato topping. Either way, this hearty stew is absolutely delicous. For vegetable sides, roast butternut is always a good option as too are sweet potatoes with honey and orange sauce. So, shuffle the table into a warm and sunny spot for a memorable, family feast.