Boeuf Bourguignon
Serving:
Time: 1 hr 45 min
Prep: 30 min
Cook: 1 hr 15 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon good olive oil
8 ounces dry cured center cut applewood smoked bacon, diced
2 1/2 pounds chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes
Sea salt from Guérande
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch chunks
2 Yellow onions, sliced
21/2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)
1 cup of Cognac
1 Good bottle of red Burgundy wine (would you have guessed otherwise?) a good Pinot Noir will do
2 cup of water with 1 and 1/2 beef cube
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 bouquet garni
4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pound pearl onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms cut up in chunks
A French baguette sliced and toasted and rubbed with garlic clove
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley,
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.
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
browned on both sides.
Reserve the bacon
Sprinkle the beef cubes salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning 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.
Peel the carrots not too fine, and onions, add the olive oil in the pan cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac, and light up for the flambé.
Put the meat and bacon back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.
Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour with a wooden spoon and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. Sauté the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.
To serve, toast the bread in the toaster or oven. Rub each slice on 1 side with
a cut clove of garlic. For each serving, spoon the stew over a slice of bread and sprinkle with parsley.
Don’t serve your worst enemy, but your best friends.
