Boeufbourguignon Recipes

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:

• Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onions; cook and stir until tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
• Cook and stir beef in the same skillet until browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Sprinkle flour, marjoram, thyme, and pepper over beef. Pour red wine and beef broth into the skillet; stir well. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beef is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stir onions into the skillet. Add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until mushrooms are tender and sauce is thick and dark brown, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• For the marinade: Combine the garlic, bay leaves, carrots, celery, onions and wine in a large bowl or container. Add the beef; cover and let sit in the refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight. (This is a really important step: it makes a huge flavor difference.)
• For the stew: Remove the beef from the marinade. Strain the veggies and bay leaves from the marinade and discard. Reserve 2 cups of the marinade.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coat a large, wide pan or Dutch oven with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Sprinkle the beef with salt and toss with the flour; do not flour the beef until you're ready to brown it. Add the flour-coated beef to the hot pan, but be sure to not crowd the pan; you will need to work in four batches. Brown the meat well on all sides, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the pan to a baking sheet.
• After the first two batches, deglaze the pot with 1/2 cup of the reserved marinade, scraping up any browned bits. Drain the liquid into a small bowl. Add more olive oil to the pan to coat and cook the remaining two batches of meat. Add the meat to the baking sheet. Deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup marinade, scraping up any browned bits.
• Add the bacon and cook until it gets brown and crispy, about 5 minutes. Toss in the mushrooms, carrots, celery, garlic and onions, and season with salt. Cook until the mixture starts to soften and becomes very aromatic, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup marinade and deglaze the pan, stirring up any browned bits, 1 minute. Add the beef. Stir to combine and cook until the wine has reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Add enough of the beef stock to just cover the surface of the beef. Toss in the bay leaves and thyme bundle. Cover the pan, bring the liquid to a boil and put in the oven.
• Cook the beef for 2 hours. During the last hour of cooking time, add the potatoes. Cover the pan with the lid and put the stew back in the oven to cook for an additional hour.
• Remove the pot from the oven and skim off any excess grease from the surface of the stew. Garnish with the chives and serve with crusty bread to sop up all the sauce.

Steps:

• First prepare the bacon: cut off the rind and reserve.
• Cut the bacon into lardons about 1/4" thick and 1 1/2" long.
• Simmer the rind and the lardons for ten minutes in 1 1/2 quarts of water.
• Drain and dry the lardons and rind and reserve.
• Pre-heat the oven to 450°F.
• Put the tablespoon of olive oil in a large (9" - 10" wide, 3" deep) fireproof casserole and warm over moderate heat.
• Saute the lardons for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly.
• Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon.
• Dry off the pieces of beef and saute them, a few at a time in the hot oil/bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides.
• Once browned, remove to the side plate with the bacon.
• In the same oil/fat, saute the onion and the carrot until softened.
• Pour off the fat and return the lardons and the beef to the casserole with the carrots and onion.
• Toss the contents of the casserole with the salt and pepper and sprinkle with the flour.
• Set the uncovered casserole in the oven for four minutes.
• Toss the contents of the casserole again and return to the hot oven for 4 more minutes.
• Now, lower the heat to 325°F and remove the casserole from the oven.
• Add the wine and enough stock so that the meat is barely covered.
• Add the tomato paste, garlic and herbs and the bacon rind.
• Bring to a simmer on the top of the stove.
• Cover and place in the oven, adjusting the heat so that the liquid simmers very slowly for three to four hours.
• The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.
• While the meat is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms and set them aside till needed.
• For the onion, if using frozen, make sure they are defrosted and drained.
• Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet and add the onions to the skillet.
• Saute over medium heat for about ten minutes, rolling the onions about so they brown as evenly as possible, without breaking apart.
• Pour in the stock, season to taste, add the herbs, and cover.
• Simmer over low heat for about 40 to 50 minutes until the onions are perfectly tender but retain their shape and the liquid has mostly evaporated.
• Remove the herbs and set the onions aside.
• For the mushrooms, heat the butter and oil over high heat in a large skillet.
• As soon as the foam begins to subside add the mushrooms and toss and shake the pan for about five minutes.
• As soon as they have browned lightly, remove from heat.
• To Finish the Stew:.
• When the meat is tender, remover the casserole from the oven and empty its contents into a sieve set over a saucepan.
• Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it (discarding the bits of carrot and onion and herbs which remain in the sieve).
• Distribute the mushrooms and onions over the meat.
• Skim the fat off the sauce and simmer it for a minute or two, skimming off any additional fat which rises to the surface.
• You should be left with about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly.
• If the sauce is too thick, add a few tablespoons of stock.
• If the sauce is too thin, boil it down to reduce to the right consistency.
• Taste for seasoning.
• Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables.
• If you are serving immediately, place the covered casserole over medium low heat and simmer 2 to 3 minutes.
• Serve in the casserole or on a warm platter surrounded by noodles, potatoes or rice and garnished with fresh parsley.
• If serving later or the next day, allow the casserole to cool and place cold, covered casserole in the refrigerator.
• 20 minutes prior to serving, place over medium low heat and simmer very slowly for ten minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the red wine, beef stock, brandy, onion, carrots, garlic, parsley sprigs, thyme, rosemary, peppercorns, cloves, allspice, and bay leaf and stir well. Add the beef and stir. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.
• Drain the beef and reserve the marinade and vegetables separately. Pat the beef dry with paper towels. Set the beef and vegetables aside.
• Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.
• Remove the outer rind of the slab bacon. Cut the bacon into lardons: 1 inch long strips about 1/4- inch thick. In a small saucepan, cover the lardons and the rind with cold water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, and simmer for 3 minutes. Drain the lardons and rind, pat them dry, and reserve both.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the lardons and cook, stirring, until crisp and their fat has rendered. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the lardons to paper towels to drain.
• Season the beef with salt and pepper, dredge in the flour, and shake off any excess.
• Raise the heat to high and, working in batches, brown the beef. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat and return to high heat. Add the reserved vegetable mixture and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, about 5 minutes.
• Return all of the browned beef to the pot. Add the reserved marinade liquid, and reserved bacon rind. Bring to a boil and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the stew to the oven and cook, covered, until the beef is very tender, about 3 hours.
• Remove the stew from the oven. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a plate. Strain the liquid and discard the solids. Return the beef and strained broth to the Dutch oven with the lardons.
• Put the pearl onions in a skillet with 1 tablespoon of butter and the sugar. Cover the onions with water and season with salt and pepper. Simmer the onions over medium-high heat until almost tender. Raise heat to high, and reduce the cooking liquid to about 2 tablespoons. Continue to cook the onions, shaking the pan over the heat, until the onions are golden brown and glazed. Transfer the onions to the stew.
• Heat 3 tablespoons of butter in another skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cook the mushrooms, tossing often, until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to the stew.
• In a small bowl, cream together the tablespoon of softened butter with the tablespoon of flour. Roll the mixture into pea-sized pieces.
• Bring the stew to a simmer and, while stirring gently, add enough beurre manie, bit by bit, to lightly thicken the sauce.
• Divide the stew among 6 shallow soup plates and garnish each with a crouton. Serve immediately with pasta or boiled potatoes.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Brush both sides of the bread with the butter and arrange them on a baking sheet. Bake the croutons until golden brown. Dip the edges of the bread in the stew to moisten; then in parsley to lightly coat the edges.
• Yield: 6 croutons

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 275F, 140C, 130 Fan, Gas Mark 1.
• Cut the beef into 2inch generous chunks and coat with seasoned plain flour
• Over a high heat add a couple of tsps olive oil to a heavy based pan, and briefly brown the meat in batches, remove meat from pan.
• Add the Red onion and pancetta and brown a little (approx 5 mins), then add a good tblsp of flour and mix well. Next add the garlic BUT DO NOT BURN. Return the browned beef to the pan. Gradually add the wine until it almost covers the meat.
• Add the stock, herbs, seasoning and brandy, stir and cook for at least 2 and half hours. Half an hour before the end of cooking add the mushrooms
• When ready sprinkle with parsley and serve with either mashed pototoes and green beans or my favourite potato Dauphinoise and brocolli and cauliflower mixed.

Steps:

• In a 6-to-8-quart saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, cook bacon uncovered over medium-low heat until browned, 10 to 15 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate; set aside. Reserve bacon fat.
• Season beef generously with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, dredge beef in flour, shaking off excess. Raise heat to medium. Working in two batches, brown beef in bacon fat on all sides, without crowding, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer each batch to a bowl.
• Pour 1/2 cup water into pan; bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, to loosen browned bits, until liquid has reduced to a few tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until slightly softened, 3 minutes. Add tomato paste; cook 1 minute.
• Add carrots, meat (with juices), wine, thyme, and reserved bacon. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer over low, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender, but not falling apart, 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
• Skim fat off surface of stew; discard. Stir Roasted Mushrooms and Pearl Onions into beef; season with salt and pepper. Serve, or refrigerate, covered, up to overnight.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot with a lid, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high. Add mushrooms and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Season beef generously with salt and pepper and add 1 tablespoon oil to pot. In batches, brown beef, 2 to 3 minutes per batch (adding up to 1 tablespoon oil per batch, if needed); transfer to plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot. Add bacon and cook over medium until brown, 5 minutes. Add tomato paste; cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add flour and cook, stirring, 30 seconds.
• Return beef to pot; add wine, broth, bay leaf, and garlic. Bring to a boil, cover, and transfer pot to oven; cook 1 1/2 hours. Add carrots and onions and cook until meat is very tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours more, adding mushrooms 15 minutes before end of cooking. Stir butter into stew and serve topped with parsley, if desired.

Steps:

• For marinade: In a large bowl, combine the wine, cognac, onions, carrots, parsley, bay leaf, garlic, peppercorns and salt. Mix well and add the cubed beef. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 days.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• For Bourguignon: Strain the meat from the vegetables and marinade; reserve marinade. Dry meat with paper towels. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meat and saute for 10 minutes, or until browned on all sides. Transfer meat to a separate medium bowl with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• In the same skillet, add the bacon and saute until lightly browned. Transfer the bacon to the bowl with the meat. Drain the skillet and return it to the heat. Pour a cup of marinade into the skillet to deglaze the skillet, scraping the bottom to loosen up all the little bits. Return this liquid to the reserved marinade.
• Heat the remaining oil in the skillet. Add the onion and carrot from the marinade, along with the additional onion that you've chopped, and saute for 5 minutes, or until tender. Transfer this mixture to the bowl with the meat and bacon, again using a slotted spoon, and return skillet to the heat. Add the flour to the skillet, combining with the oil and stir until well mixed and brown, about 2 minutes.
• Now add the tomato paste, garlic, beef broth, reserved marinade and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and whisk to remove any flour lumps. Add this to the meat and vegetable mixture. Place entire mixture into a 9x13 baking dish.
• Bake at 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) for 3 hours, stirring occasionally and adding water as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• About 15 minutes before meat is done baking, melt butter in the skillet over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms and saute for 5 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. When meat is done, add the mushrooms to the meat mixture, stir well and let sit for about 15 minutes.

Steps:

• Cook bacon in boiling salted water 3 minutes, then drain.
• Pat beef dry and season with salt and pepper. Divide flour and beef between 2 (1-quart) sealable plastic bags, seal, then shake to coat meat.
• Heat 1‚ tablespoons oil and 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in a wide 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown beef well on all sides in 2 or 3 batches, without crowding, adding remaining ‚ tablespoon oil as needed. Transfer to a bowl.
• Pour off any excess oil from pot, then add brandy to pot. Deglaze by boiling over high heat 1 minute, stirring and scraping up brown bits, then pour over beef.
• Tie celery, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, and cloves together with kitchen string to make a bouquet garni (tuck cloves into celery so they don't fall out).
• Heat 1 tablespoon butter in cleaned pot over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sauté bacon, stirring, 2 minutes. Add chopped onions, garlic, and carrots, then sauté, stirring, until onions are pale golden, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine, meat with juices, and bouquet garni and simmer gently, partially covered, until meat is tender, 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
• While meat simmers, blanch boiling onions in boiling salted water 1 minute and drain in a colander. Rinse under cold running water, then peel.
• Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then saut boiling onions, stirring occasionally, until browned in patches. Season with salt and pepper. Add 2 cups water (1 1/2 cups if using pearl onions), then simmer, partially covered, until onions are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced to a glaze, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Heat remaining tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then saut mushrooms, stirring, until golden brown and any liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Stir onions and mushrooms into stew and cook 10 minutes. Remove bouquet garni and skim any fat from surface of stew. Season with salt and pepper.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
• Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a plate.
• Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with 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 carrots, onions, 1 T of the salt and 2 t of the pepper into the fat in the pot and cook over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac (stand back and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol). Put the meat and the bacon back into the pot with any juices that have accumulated on the plate. Add the wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a boil, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and put it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours, or until the meat and veggies are very tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from the oven and put on top of the stove.
• Combine 2 T of the butter and all of the flour with a fork and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. In a medium pan, saute the mushrooms in the remaining 2 T of butter over medium heat for 10 minutes, or until lightly browned, and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 15 mintues. Season to taste.
• Rub each slice of bread on one side with the garlic. For each serving, spoon the stew over a slice of bread and sprinkle with parsley.
• Note: if the sauce is too thin, you can add more of the butter and flour mixture.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Sauté bacon in heavy large Dutch oven over high heat until brown and crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels. Season beef generously with salt and pepper; coat with 1/3 cup flour, using all of flour. Working in 3 batches, brown beef in same pot over high heat, about 5 minutes per batch. Transfer meat to large bowl. Add onions and carrots to same pot and sauté until light brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Transfer vegetables to bowl with beef.
• Add 1 cup broth and Cognac to pot; boil until reduced to glaze, scraping up browned bits, about 8 minutes. Return meat and vegetables and their juices to pot. Add wine, mushrooms, thyme, sugar, tomato paste and 2 cups broth. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Cover pot and place in oven. Cook until beef is tender, about 1 hour 20 minutes.
• Ladle liquid from stew into large saucepan. Spoon off fat. Boil liquid until reduced to 2 3/4 cups, about 40 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Pour liquid back over beef and vegetables. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.) Rewarm over low heat before serving.