Best Beef Bourguinon

garylkoh

WBF Technical Expert (Speakers & Audio Equipment)
Sep 6, 2010
5,599
225
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Seattle, WA
www.genesisloudspeakers.com
Beef Bourguinon is a stew from Burgundy - made famous in the US by Julia Child. However, I've never been really successful with her recipe. There are lots of recipes using onion powder, beef stock, etc. for taste.

Here's mine - as refined over the years. It's a recipe that requires lots of labor, but I think that the results are worth it. I had a friend fly in from Singapore, and this is what I cooked his family for their first meal in cold, wet Seattle. You should ideally cook this the day before you want to eat because the flavors will integrate and mellow overnight.

4 lbs chuck or stewing beef cubed (or 3 lbs + 1 lb of brisket if you like)
1 cup plus 4 tablespoons of all purpose flour
olive oil and butter for frying
1 lb mushrooms - a variety (chanterelles and matsutake are in season in in the Pacific Northwest) + crimini and button
1 lb carrots
one large yellow onion
one small can tomato paste
8 cloves garlic
4 ounces salt pork (I don't like to use bacon as the flavor can be over powering)
a bottle of good wine - Burgundy preferred, pinot noir can be used too
couple of sprigs of fresh thyme
4 pieces whole dried bay leaf

for serving - a crusty loaf, creme fraiche

Preheat the oven to 325 deg.

Pat dry the cubed beef. Spread out the cup of flour on a plate, add a couple of grinds of pepper and a couple of grinds of sea salt. Coat the beef in the flour mixture.

Cut the salt pork into 1/2 inch cubes. Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat. Once the dutch oven is hot, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Fry the cubed salt pork until all the fat renders and the salt pork is crispy, about 5 minutes.

In the meantime, while the salt pork is rendering, finely chop the onion, and separately finely chop the garlic.

Once th salt pork is crispy, remove the salt pork from the oil and put aside.

Brown all sides of the flour-coated cubed beef in small batches in the hot oil. Put the browned beef aside and you brown the next batch. Once that is all done, the bottom of the dutch oven will be sticky with frond and flour. Add more oil, and melt about 1/2 a stick of butter in the hot oil, add the onion and fry till soft about 5 minutes. Once soft, add the garlic and fry for 2 minutes.

Dust the 4 tablespoons of flour into the onion/garlic mixture and stir well. Add the browned beef cubes crispy salt pork cubes, the can of tomato paste, the bay leaf and thyme and mix well. Add half the bottle of wine and mix well.

Once the wine begins to simmer, cover the dutch oven and bake in the pre-heated oven for 3 hours.

While waiting, drink the other half bottle of wine.

Cut mushrooms into quarters. Cut the carrots into 1-inch pieces. After 3 hours, remove the dutch oven from the oven, and stir in the mushrooms and carrots. Put the dutch oven back in to cook for another 45 minutes, and remove to stand overnight. Resist the urge to remove the lid and taste the stew.

The next day, re-heat the dutch oven for 30 minutes in an oven pre-heated to 325 deg.

Serve with burgundy and crusty bread. Stir in a teaspoon of creme fraiche if desired.
 

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