French onion beef braise with Gruyère toasts recipe

Ingredients

• Olive oil for frying
• 5 red onions, finely sliced
• 4 fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1.5kg beef shin, cut into 3cm pieces and tossed in 4 tbsp plain flour
• 300g button mushrooms, large ones halved
• 750ml bottle red wine
• 300ml beef stock
• 2 bay leaves
• Chopped fresh parsley to serve
• 1 red onion, half finely chopped, half sliced into rings
• 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 1 part-baked French baguette
• 100g gruyère, grated
• 100g comté cheese, grated
• You’ll also need…
• Shallow, lidded flameproof casserole