Beef Bourguignon (French Red Wine Beef Stew)
A classic stew from France's Burgundy region. Beef is slowly braised for hours in tannic red wine with onion and carrot, then enriched with bacon and button mushrooms. A square of dark chocolate melted into the sauce gives this authentic French home-style dish its deep, rich flavor.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Beef (shank or brisket)1 kg
- Onion1
- Carrot2
- Celery1 stalk
- Button mushrooms150g
- Bacon150g
- Orange1
- Flour20g
- Cooking oil40 ml
- Salt & pepperA little
Bouquet Garni & Sauce
- Bay leaves1 leaf
- ThymeA little
- ParsleyA little
- Red wine350 ml
- Water550 ml
- Tomato paste1 tbsp
- Ginger powder1/2 tsp
- Paprika powder1/2 tsp
- Nutmeg1 pinch
- Dark chocolate10g
Directions
- 1
Make a bouquet garni: tie parsley stems, thyme, and a bay leaf together with kitchen string (or put them in a tea bag). Preheat the oven to 180°C (355°F).
- 2
Roughly chop the celery and onion. Cut the carrots into thick half-moons.
- 3
Wash the orange well and finely zest the peel.
- 4
Cut the beef into large chunks, pat dry with paper towels, and season with salt and pepper.
- 5
Heat 30ml of oil in a pot over high heat and sear the beef on all sides until browned. Remove the beef, lower the heat, and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spatula.
- 6
In the same pot, add 10ml of oil, then the onion and carrot with a pinch of salt and sauté. Once the onion softens, stir in the flour, then bake in the oven for 5 minutes without stirring (or cook over low heat if you don't have an oven).
- 7
In a separate pot, bring the red wine and water to a gentle simmer. Set aside the tomato paste, ginger powder, paprika powder, nutmeg, and salt.
- 8
Take the vegetables out of the oven and lower the temperature to 150°C (300°F). Mix the carrot, onion, and flour well, then add the ginger powder, paprika powder, nutmeg, tomato paste, and salt, and cook over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Return the beef to the pot and pour in the simmered wine mixture until the meat is about three-quarters submerged. Add the celery, orange zest, and bouquet garni, scraping the bottom of the pot as you mix. Cover and cook in the oven at 150°C (or over low heat) for 3 hours.
- 9
About 10-15 minutes before taking the pot out of the oven, cut the mushrooms in half or quarters. Simmer the bacon in a pan with water; once the water evaporates, add a little oil and sauté over medium heat, then drain.
- 10
In the same pan, sauté the mushrooms with salt and pepper, then set aside.
- 11
Take the pot out of the oven and remove the beef and carrots. Strain the rest through a sieve, keeping only the sauce.
- 12
Melt the dark chocolate into the sauce and adjust the seasoning with salt.
- 13
Return the bacon, mushrooms, carrots, and beef to the pot, pour the sauce over, and heat through before serving.
Tips
Using beef shank makes the meat very tender and flavorful after the long braise. You can cut the carrots thicker than shown in the photos. If straining the sauce feels like a hassle, put the onion, celery, orange zest, and herbs in a tea bag and lift it out after cooking. Using a tannic red wine (Languedoc, Côtes du Rhône, or Bordeaux are recommended) gives the dish a deeper flavor.