Recipe No 342 stew Original 2009 Adapted 2013

Boeuf bourguignon

This classic French dish is given a delicious twist and cleaner flavour by dispensing with flour as the thickening agent. Instead, a carrot purée is used which adds richness without masking flavour.

This dish is great for dinner parties because it can be made well in advance and reheats well.

We have yet to encounter an omnivore who didn’t enjoy this dish.

Adapted from Guillaume Brahimi

Time

Prep:

Total:

Difficulty
easy
Yield
8 serves • 3200 g
Metric Imperial

Processes

  • Beef oyster blade, bolar blade or shoulder (see notes for other options)
    1000 g
  • Garlic
    3 g
  1. 01
    Cut into 1" / 2.5 cm pieces and divide into 4 batches for frying.

  • Red wine (2 bottles)
    1500 g
  1. 02
    Set aside 100 g / 3.5 oz.
  2. 03
    Bring to boil in a flame proof casserole.
  3. 04
    Boil for and turn off heat.

  • Peanut oil, or other high smoke-point oil (1 tbsp)
    15 g
  • Beef chunks, from (1¼ cup)
    250 g
  1. 05
    Heat oil in a fry pan over highest heat until just smoking. Turn heat to medium.
  2. 06
    Place the meat into the pan in a single layer and cook for without disturbing. Brown on one side only. Remove from pan and set aside.
  3. 07
    Repeat this process until all the meat has been browned. Discard residual oil between batches so it does not become burnt and acrid, but reserve oil from final batch and turn heat to high.

  • Carrots; halved lengthways, sliced ¼" / 0.5 cm thick (2 large)
    200 g
  • Celery; stalks and small leaves, halved lengthways, sliced ¼" / 0.5 cm thick (2 large)
    120 g
  • Leek; halved lengthways, sliced ¼" / 0.5 cm thick (1 large)
    90 g
  • Onion; skin removed, chopped (1 medium)
    90 g
  • Shallots; skin removed, halved (5 small)
    180 g
  1. 08
    Add to pan and sauté for . (Leave the vegetables untouched in the pan for before turning; repeat 8 times.)
  2. 09
    Transfer to casserole and add the reserved meat .

  • Red wine, reserved from
    100 g
  1. 10
    Deglaze pan and add to casserole .

  • Thyme (10 sprigs)
    10 g
  • Speck
    300 g
  • Salt
    15 g
  • Pepper
    4 g
  • Bouquet garni, optional
    290 g
  1. 11
    Add to casserole.
  2. 12
    Cover and cook on lowest heat for .

  • Mushrooms (such as button); small, whole (3½ cups)
    300 g
  1. 13
    Add to casserole and stir to combine.
  2. 14
    Remove lid and continue to simmer for a further .

  • Carrot purée (5 large)
    500 g
  1. 15
    Add to casserole and stir to combine.
  2. 16
    Cover and cook for further .

  • Flat-leaf parsley; leaves only, chopped (1 cup)
    20 g
  1. 17
    Add to casserole and stir to combine.

  • Flat-leaf parsley; leaves only, chopped (2 sprig)
    5 g
  1. 18
    Garnish.

Notes

The attention you pay to each process will reward you in the final dish. We have given specific instructions about how to brown the meat and sauté the vegetables (step 08) because these are the details which greatly enhance the final dish.

The carrot puree can be made by boiling or steaming sliced carrots until soft, about , then pass through a medium sieve or use a stick blender. Our favorite method, however, is to slice them ¼" / 0.5 cm thick and cook them sous vide (in a single layer) with 5% by weight of butter for @ 85°C / 185°F. Even better, use Best-ever baby food.

Cut the larger mushrooms into halves.

Browning meat is best done over a medium–high heat with enough oil to completely coat the bottom of the pan. Many people worry that this seems to be too much oil, but keep in mind that only a small amount of meat comes in contact with the oil, and the remaining oil should be discarded after each batch (step 06) because reheating the same oil will scorch or burn it, making it acrid and bitter. Work in small batches as we have described here. We deliberately brown the meat on one side only because it reduces the surface area of meat which comes in contact with oil which reduces the chance of overcooking. See Kenji Lopez-Alt from Serious Eats and his research into browning meat on one side only to improve the succulence in braised dishes.

=== Tough beef, for braise ===

Any muscle of beef which does a lot of work is suitable for this dish. These are some of the ones I have researched:

* Brisket (tried many times, but can turn out slightly too dry if not using the point end)

* Chuck tender; aka mock tender. H.A.M. code #2310. (Local butcher says this piece is only about 700g in size; smaller than required for this recipe. This typical size is confirmed in this useful table from the H.A.M.)

* Oyster blade; H.A.M. code #2303. (Recommended by head chef of French restaurant, Bistro Papillon.) Interestingly, this is obtained by removing the bolar blade from the blade. Must try.

* Ox cheek. H.A.M. code 6060.

* Brisket; specify point end. H.A.M. code 2332. Kenji recommends to sous vide for 24–37 hours at 68°C.

Making ahead

Boil the red wine .

Prepare the Bouquet garni .

Prepare the vegetables .

Prepare the carrot purée.

Storing

keeps well in the refridgerator for up to 5 days; freezer for 6 weeks

Food pairings

Silky mash potatoes

Drink pairings

Shiraz

Categorisation

Category
braise casserole stew
Meal
dinner
Cuisine
french
Diet
omnivorous
Tags
beouf bourguignon braise