Recipe

Beef Bourguignon

April 24, 2021

PrepTime: 30 Mins
CookTime: 4 Hrs 30 Mins
TotalTime: 29 Hrs

Ingredient

2 1/4 pounds beef, such as brisket, chuck steak, or stewing beef
3-4 bay leaves
6 garlic cloves, halved
1 small bunch fresh thyme
1 bottle good French red wine
4 large carrots, roughly chopped
2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon tomato puree
5 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 cup baby onions or round shallots, peeled
1 tablespoon butter
7 ounces smoked bacon lardons
2 cups button mushrooms, washed
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
Fresh parsley, finely chopped

Instruction

Gather the marinade ingredients.
Cut the beef into even 2-inch chunks. Put the beef, bay leaves, halved garlic cloves and thyme onto a large glass bowl. Pour over the red wine, cover and leave to marinate in a cool place or the refrigerator for a minimum of 24 hours (36 is even better).
Gather the Bourguignon ingredients and preheat the oven to 300 F.
Remove the meat from the marinade and lay onto kitchen paper and pat dry with more paper. Keep the marinade to one side.
Put an ovenproof casserole dish or Dutch oven (instructions on using a slow cooker instead are below) onto a high heat. Add 4 tablespoons of the vegetable oil and heat to hot, but not smoking. Add half of the dried meat chunks and sear on all sides. Remove from the pan and put onto a plate and repeat with the remaining meat.
Add the carrots, celery, and onion to the pot used to sear the beef and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes stirring constantly. Sprinkle over the flour stir, then add the tomato paste and stir again.
Add the meat back to the pot, add the reserved marinade and add beef stock to cover the meat. Cover with a well-fitting lid and place into the oven for 4 hours. Check from time to time to make sure the liquid is not too low, top up with beef stock, the level should be just over the meat.
Once the beef bourguignon has had 4 hours in the oven, it will be cooked and the meat just about falling apart. At this point, if you want to, the dish could be served, and it will be excellent. However, for a truly classic dish, take it to the next level with the addition of a few more ingredients.
To finish the beef Bourguignon, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add the peeled onions, and cook for 10 minutes stirring or shaking the pan occasionally. The onions do not need to be cooked through completely, but should be just starting to soften.
Lift the onions from the skillet and keep to one side. In the same skillet, add the lardons and fry until most of the fat has been released and the lardons are starting to brown. Drain on kitchen paper. Add the softened onions, lardons and the button mushrooms to the Bourguignon, put on to medium heat and cook for a further 20 minutes making sure not to boil as this will break up the meat too much. Taste and add salt and pepper to your taste.
The casserole is now ready to serve or for an even richer flavor if you have the time, leave overnight and reheat the next day.

Note

Classically the Bourguignon would be served with fluffy, creamy mashed potatoes and garnished with chopped parsley.
if you can't find lardons, use smoked streaky bacon, cut into 3/4-inch pieces.
If you want to use a slow cooker to make the beef Bourguignon, follow the instructions as they are until step 5. Here, sear the meat and vegetables in a skillet unless your cooker has a searing function. Then use your slow cooker. Six hours on low will work wonderfully.