Start with your mirepoix. Finely slice two peeled carrots and dice an onion and two sticks of celery. Put these into a large pot and saute on medium heat in your favourite cooking oil, about 2 teaspoons of salt and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, until the onions have caramelized. They will still be soft. Add 4 cups of water, turn up to high and let that boil down, ‘reduce’. Once this has reduced to about an inch of liquid, add another 4 cups and repeat that process. This forms the basic stock for your soup.

After your second reduction add another 4-6 cups of water and your beef. Turn the stove down to medium low and add water as necessary to keep things from getting too low; we are reducing again — this time to infuse the flavour of the beef and soften it up. You can do this all day and the beef will be more and more tender the longer you do it. Dice 2-3 cloves of garlic and add them at this point. Salt and pepper to taste.

When you're ready to move into the last 20 minutes before serving, peel and quarter your potatoes. Thick slice (country-style) 2-3 peeled carrots and add them to the stock. Let this slow boil for another 10 minutes. You want the potatoes cooked but not soft. Add more water as needed.

Add your peas after about another 8 minutes. Whisk 2 tablespoons of bisto and a tablespoon of flour into 2 cups of water and add to the stock to thicken it. Reduce the heat to medium and stir constantly until the desired thickness is achieved. Remove from heat when it is.