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Beef Bourguignon
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Boeuf Bourguignon

Course Main Course
Cuisine French
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 6 oz chunk of bacon or very thick cut bacon will do in a pinch
  • 1 TBS olive oil or cooking oil
  • 3 lbs. lean stewing beef cut into 2-inch cubes such as Rump Pot Roast, Chuck Pot Roast, Sirloin Tip, Top Round or Bottom Round
  • 1 carrot sliced
  • 1 onion sliced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • 2 TBS flour
  • 3 cups of a full-bodied, young red wine, such as Chianti
  • 2-3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
  • 1 TBS tomato paste
  • 2 cloves garlic mashed
  • ½ tsp thyme
  • 1 crumbled bay leaf
  • Brown-braised onions recipe to follow
  • Sauteed mushrooms recipe to follow
  • Parsley

Instructions

  • Remove the bacon rind, and cut bacon into lardons (sticks, ¼ inch thick and 1½ inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1½ quarts of water. Drain and dry. (If you are using thick cut bacon instead of the chunk, do your best to remove the fatty long side of the bacon with a knife and keep that together as the “rind.” Simply slice the remaining pieces of bacon into thin strips.)
  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  • In a 9- to 10-inch fireproof casserole, at least 3 inches deep (I used my dutch oven), saute the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2-3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Reheat the casserole until the fat is almost smoking before you saute the beef.
  • Dry the beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Saute it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.
  • In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sauteing fat (if any remains).
  • Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole, and turn oven down to 325 degrees.
  • Stir in the wine, and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2½ to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.
  • While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.
  • When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon (excluding the rind) to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushroom over the meat.
  • Skim the fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2½ cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables.
  • To serve immediately, cover the casserole and simmer for 2-3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in its casserole, or arrange the stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice, and decorated with parsley.

Notes