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Easy Boeuf Bourguignon

Marinading the stew beef is highly recommended - even if it's just a couple of hours. The wine helps break down the connective tissue that is typical of chuck. There are a good number of ingredients, but nothing exotic. This recipe is quite easy, just follow the steps! Bon appétit!
Course Main Course
Cuisine French
Keyword beef braise, beef stew, Boeuf Bourguignon
Prep Time 3 hours
Cook Time 1 hour
Servings 10 servings
Author misangela

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Ingredients

  • 3 Tbl EVOO
  • 5 slices bacon, cut into 1/2" pieces sub pancetta
  • 2 pounds beef chuck, 1" dice aka stew beef
  • 2 Tbl S/P equal parts
  • 1 cup flour for beef dredge
  • 1 Lg onion, large 1" dice about 1.5 cups
  • 3 stalks celery, 1/2" slices on the bias about 1 cup
  • 3 med carrots, 1/2" slices on the bias about 1 cup
  • 4 cloves garlic, rough chop
  • 1 pound cremini mushrooms, stemmed, 1/2" slices cut in half if they are large
  • 2 Tbl butter I use salted always, doesn't matter
  • 1/2 cup brandy or cognac optional, but adds depth
  • 2 Tbl tomato paste
  • 3 whole bay leaves
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves 5-6 stems tied together whole or 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 pound frozen pearl onions about half a bag
  • 2 cups dry red wine pinot noir or a light cabernet
  • 2 cups beef stock start with one cup and add to taste/thickness of stew is to your liking
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley, rough chopped leaves only

Marinade for Beef

  • 1 cup dry red wine you can put this marinade in the stew, just strain out peppercorns and bay leaf, then measure liquid and add fresh wine to 2 cups
  • 2 Tbl Lea & Perrins Worcestershire L&P is the best
  • 1 Tbl EVOO
  • 2 Tbl whole black peppercorns or you use the mixed ones
  • 2 whole bay leaves

Instructions

  • Marinate the beef! Put beef in a ziplock bag with marinade in the morning and let sit all day. Or even just a couple of hours would be fine. It really helps with the flavour of the beef and it softens the sometimes chewy bits of stew beef.
  • Preheat the oven to 300F.
  • Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate.
  • Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then dredge them in flour, salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove the seared cubes to the plate with the bacon and continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside.
  • Toss the onions, celery, carrots and mushrooms, a good pinch of salt and 2 good pinches of pepper into the fat in the pan, along with the butter and cook for 10 to 15 minutes over med flame, stirring occasionally, until the veg is lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
  • Add the pearl onions, tomato paste, bay leaves and thyme. Stir for a minute.
  • Add the Cognac and scrape any bits from the bottom of the pot. Put the meat and bacon back into the pot with the juices.
  • Add the wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 hour or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.
  • Remove stew from oven and add fresh parsley. Check your S/P.
  • Serve with baguette.

Notes

This dish has a reputation for being difficult, mainly because Julia Child's recipe is soooo long! It is really not hard, there are just a few steps to follow. Drying the beef, dredging and searing it, is really the key to good boeuf bourguignon.