Beef Bourguignonne Potpie Recipes

Steps:

• Place a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 400°. Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high. Season 1/2 cup flour with salt and pepper. Add beef and toss to coat; shake off excess. Working in batches as needed to avoid steaming meat, cook beef, turning often, until browned all over, 8-10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.
• Cook bacon in same pot, stirring often, until brown and crisp. Add 1/4 cup water and cook, scraping up browned bits, then add onion, leek, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and parsley and return beef to pot. Add brandy and simmer until liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Add thyme leaves, bay leaf, star anise, broth, and wine and season with salt and pepper; bring to a simmer.
• Mix 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon butter in a small bowl until smooth; stir into meat mixture. Cover pot and braise in oven until beef is very tender, 1 - 1 1/2 hours.
• Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and pearl onions and cook, stirring, until browned, 8-10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms and onions to stew, cover pot, and return to oven. Cook until onions are very tender, 25-30 minutes. Let stew cool.
• Meanwhile, working with one at a time, roll out pastry sheets on a lightly floured surface until about 4" larger than baking dish (use a 2-qt. oval or an 8" square). Place 1 sheet on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill. Transfer remaining sheet to baking dish. Lift up edge and let dough slump down into dish. Trim, leaving about 1" overhang. Transfer stew to baking dish. Brush edge of pastry with egg.
• Using a cutter, punch out a circle in the center of chilled pastry. Drape pastry over filling and trim to a 1" overhang. Press edges of dough together to seal and fold overhang under. Crimp edge, then brush top of pastry with egg.
• Bake until crust is deep golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Let pie cool slightly.
• Do ahead: Stew can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Heat a 6-to-8-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat; add the bacon and cook until lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon to a large plate, leaving the drippings in the pot.
• Pat the beef dry with paper towels; season with salt and pepper. Add the beef to the pot in a single layer (do this in batches); sear for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown all over. Transfer with a slotted spoon to the plate with the bacon.
• Add the carrots and onions to the pot and cook until softened and slightly browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, make a "bouquet garni": Tie the thyme, bay leaf, garlic, parsley and celery together with twine (nestle the garlic in the celery stalk).
• Return the bacon and beef to the pot. Add the flour and stir for a few minutes until the meat is coated. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the brandy and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the red wine; cook until reduced by half again, about 10 more minutes. Add the stock and bouquet garni; bring to a low boil. Stir gently, then cover and transfer to the oven; cook until the meat is tender and cooked through, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the pearl onions and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and 1/4 cup water; cook until the water evaporates and the onions are browned, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms; cook until slightly softened and golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; set the skillet aside.
• Remove the meat from the pot with a slotted spoon. Let the sauce sit for a few minutes, then skim off the fat and discard. Return the meat to the pot. Add the pearl onions and mushrooms; heat through. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parsley. (For better flavor, make the dish a day ahead.)

Steps:

• Tip 1.6kg braising steak, cut into large chunks, into a large bowl with 3 bay leaves, a small bunch of thyme, 2 bottles cheap red wine and some pepper, then cover and leave in the fridge overnight.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Place a colander over another large bowl and strain the marinated meat, keeping the wine.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan, then brown the meat in batches, transferring to a plate once browned. When all the meat is browned, pour a little wine into the now-empty frying pan and bubble to release any caramelised bits from the pan.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large casserole and fry 3 large or 6 normal carrots, cut into large chunks, and 2 roughly chopped onions until they start to colour. Stir in 3 tbsp plain flour for 1 min, then add 1 tbsp tomato purée.
• Add the beef and any juices, the wine from the frying pan and the rest of the wine and herbs. Season and bring to a simmer. Give everything a good stir, then cover.
• Transfer to the oven and bake for 2 hrs until the meat is really tender. Cool. Will freeze for up to 3 months.
• To serve, defrost completely overnight in the fridge if frozen, then place on a low heat to warm through.
• Meanwhile, heat a small knob of butter in a frying pan and add 300g bacon lardons and 500g peeled pearl onions or small shallots. Sizzle for about 10 mins until the bacon starts to crisp and the onions soften and colour.
• Add 400g halved mushrooms and fry for another 5 mins, then stir everything into the stew and heat for 10 mins more. Serve scattered with chopped parsley.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine thyme, salt and black pepper.
• Add beef and toss to coat.
• In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat.
• Add half of the beef and cook 10 minutes, or until browned, stirring occasionally.
• Transfer beef to bowl.
• Repeat with remaining beef, then return the already browned beef to the pot.
• Stir in broth, wine, and garlic.
• Reduce heat to low, cover tightly and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
• Add carrots, potatoes, mushrooms and onions.
• Cover and cook 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
• In a small bowl, combine water and flour; gradually stir into the stew.
• Cook, uncovered, 10 minutes, or until stew is slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.

Steps:

• (Up to a month ahead) heat the oil in a large pan. Fry the bacon lardons over a high heat for several mins until well coloured. Using a slotted spoon, remove from the pan, drain on kitchen paper and set aside. Season the beef, then fry in the fat left in the pan. Once coloured, add all the remaining ingredients for the beef, except the cornfl our and bacon, and bring to a simmer. Partly cover the pan with a lid and continue to cook for a further 2-2½ hrs or until the beef is tender.
• Once cooked, tip everything into a colander set over another pan so you can catch the sauce. Tip the contents of the colander into a large pie dish, about 28cm x 23cm x 5cm. Re-boil the sauce and check for seasoning. Thicken with the loosened cornfl our, adding a little at a time and stirring until you have the desired coating consistency. Spoon enough sauce over the beef to barely cover and loosen it, then stir. Remaining sauce can be frozen, ready to re-heat and offer separately on the day.
• While the beef is cooling, make the mash. Boil the potatoes until tender, 15-20 mins, depending on size. Drain off the water and replace the lid. Shake the pan to break up the boiled potatoes. Add butter and milk a little at a time while mashing. Season.
• Spoon and spread the mashed potatoes on top of the cooled beef. Once covered, the mash can be marked with a spoon, palette knife or fork for a more interesting fi nish (see Gary's tip, left). When cold, the cottage pie is ready to cover and freeze.
• The day before serving, transfer the pie to the fridge to defrost overnight. (Or reheat from frozen on the day, see below.)
• On the day, reheat the pie. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. If thawed, bake for 50 mins-1 hr, or until heated through, then increase heat to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 for the fi nal 10 mins for a golden brown topping. If cooking from frozen, cover with foil, then bake for 1¼ hrs; remove foil and bake uncovered for 1¼ hrs more, then increase heat as above for the last 10 mins.