Beef Bourguignon
The classic French beef stew has come a long way since Escoffier`s version in 1903; from peasant food to fine dining all the way to Julia Child`s version using beef cubes instead of a whole piece. With so much history, this is not our simplest recipe, but we did our best to make it easy even for novice cooks.
Our recipe has all the classic ingredients, some new ones and a whole lot of flavour. You might want to make extras though, your guests will be asking for seconds!
If you feel comfortable skipping straight to the Ingredients and Step-by-Step, click on the button below.
As a rule of thumb, especially with more complicated recipes, prepare all ingredients ahead of time to make the cooking easier. Cut 6 slices of bacon into small pieces, add salt and pepper to 2 Lbs of stewing beef, chop 1 Spanish onion, 1 carrot and 1 celery into small pieces, thinly slice 4 cloves of garlic, and quarter 1 cup of cremini mushrooms (or pickled canned mushrooms). Have a clean, large bowl ready to use.
In a large pot, cook bacon pieces on medium heat for about 6 minutes. Once the fat is mostly rendered, move the bacon bits from the pot and place them on the large bowl. Keep the fat in the pot, turn the heat to high and sear seasoned beef cubes on all sides. this should take about 4-5 minutes. Reserve the beef in the bowl with the bacon.
Lower the heat back to medium, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the diced onions, carrots, celery and mushrooms for 5 minutes. Add sliced garlic to the pot and 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and mix well, cook for another 5 minutes.
Pour a bottle of good red wine into the pot and use a wooden spoon to scrape the burnt bits off the bottom of the pot. Add ½ cup of pickled sweet onions (no juice), mix well and pour all the contents of the pot in the bowl with the bacon and the beef.
Now, you`re gonna make a roux. In the same pot on medium heat, melt 4 tablespoons of butter. Once melted, add 4 tablespoons of flour and use a rubber whisk to vigorously whisk the mixture for about 6 minutes. It should have the consistency of wet sand, whisk and cook until the roux becomes about 3 shades darker than when you started.
Slowly add 2 cups of room temperature beef broth to the roux while whisking vigorously, make sure it is completely incorporated into the broth. Add the reserved wine mixture, 2 bay leafs, ½ teaspoon each of dry oregano and dry rosemary, 2 teaspoons of dry thyme (or 3 sprigs of fresh thyme) to the pot, and salt and pepper to taste, mix well and let it cook on medium heat for 40-50 minutes. Stir occasionally to remove bits from the bottom of the pot.
The broth should have reduced to about 2/3 at this point and become much thicker. Once you`re happy with the consistency and the tenderness of the beef, enjoy with your favourite starch.
Our favourite is combination for the beef bourguignon is mashed potatoes and lightly steamed vegetables.
Beef Bourguignon
Servings: 4
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Ingredients
2 Tbsp EVOO
2 Lbs Stewing Beef
1 Celery Stalk, small dice
1 Carrots, small dice
1 Spanish Onions, small dice
4 Garlic Cloves, sliced
6 Bacon Slices, chopped
2 Bay Leaves
1 Bottle Red Wine, 750mL
2 Cups Beef Broth
2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
2 tsp Dry Thyme, or 3 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
½ tsp Dry Rosemary
½ tsp Dry Oregano
4 Tbsp Butter
4 Tbsp AP Flour
½ Cup Pickled Sweet Onions
1 Cup Quartered Cremini Mushrooms, or Canned Mushrooms
Step-by-Step
1. Cut the bacon into small pieces and render the fat in a large pot, 5-7 minutes on medium heat. Remove the cooked bits from the pot and reserve in a large bowl. Turn the heat to high and sear the stewing beef seasoned with salt and pepper, remove the beef from the pot and reserve with the bacon.
2. Turn the heat back down to medium and add the olive oil to the pot, saute small diced onions, carrots, mushrooms and celery for 5 minutes, add sliced garlic and tomato paste and cook for another 5 minutes.
3. Deglaze the pot with red wine and add sweet pickled onions. Reserve all the contents of the pot in the same bowl as the beef.
4. In the same pot, on medium heat, melt the butter fully and add the flour. Whisk with a rubber whisk constantly until the consistency is like wet sand and the colour is darker then when you started, about 6 minutes. Slowly add the beef broth while whisking until it`s fully incorporated. Add back all the reserved ingredients and herbs.
5. Keep the heat on medium and cook for about 50 minutes, until the sauce reduces and becomes a bit thicker, and the beef is very tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste and enjoy with a nice serving of mashed potatoes or rice and vegetables.
