I agree about shin. You need to trim it somewhat, but the fat and sinewy stuff renders nicely and adds flavour, so don't go beserk. When I do it, the pieces of meat are about an inch in size to begin with, but they shrink somewhat during the cooking.

You don't need herbs or garlic. Definitely no mushrooms. Why over-egg the pudding? You've chosen a flavoursome cut of beef, so let it do the talking. My method couldn't be easier. Put the beef into your big, deep pan with some water. While you're bringing that to the boil, peel and cut some carrots into fairly thick rounds and throw them in. Roughly chop some onions and throw them in. Cut a peeled swede into half-inch chunks and throw them in. Peel some potatoes and chop them into one-inch pieces. Throw half of them in now and the other half in an hour's time. Season well with salt and freshly-ground black pepper. You can add more later if needs be.

Simmer for about two hours or until the meat is drop-dead tender. I haven't mentioned amounts. When we have this, I make enough for three lots for the two of us. That would be about two pounds or a bit more of meat, three onions, three fairly big spuds, a medium swede and about a pound of carrots. The water should cover everything. I use my biggest, deepest Le Creuset, which is a 26cm one, and it's filled nearly to the top.

Now here's the rub. Do not eat this today. Eat your first lot tomorrow. You will not believe the improvement in flavour that keeping it for 24 hours makes. I portion the stew carefully into three separate lots and put two in the fridge, one for tomorrow, one for the next day and one for the day after. Now I can't envisage this without suet dumplings. For two people, you need 50g suet, 100g self-raising flour and seasoning. Add a bit of water very carefully to make a firm but flexible dough. Not sloppy. It takes a bit of practice. Form the dough into six dumplings. Bring the stew to the boil and carefully add the dumplings. Put the lid on and simmer gently but merrily for 20 minutes. We like to have a few extra boiled spuds to ladle the stew on to, but that's up to you. Crusty bread would be just as good. Done.