Beef Bourguignon (Burgundy)

A week or so ago we were going to be snowed in and I wanted to make a great dish that simmered on the stove, cooked for a few hours, and smelled amazing.  First thing that came to mind was Beef Burgundy.  I knew that would be a hearty dish that my guys would love. 

When it got to this point of the cooking that is when the smells got amazing and started wafting through the house.  Son #1 came in the kitchen, "What are you making?"  I knew it.

Here is the point in cooking when I threw in the thyme bundle and the bay leaves.

Ingredients

Marinade:

5 cloves of garlic, smashed

3 bay leaves

2 carrots, peeled and halved

2 ribs celery, halved

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

one 750 ml bottle of red wine, such as Burgundy

3 lbs. beef chuck, cut into 1-inch chunks

Stew:

Extra-virgin olive oil

salt

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

8 oz. slab bacon, cut into lardons

1 lb. white button mushrooms, quartered

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice 

2 ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 large onion, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice

1/4 cup tomato paste

3-4 cups beef stock

3 bay leaves

1 bundle of fresh thyme

1 lb. potatoes, quartered

Crusty bread for serving

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 really an important step: it will enhance the flavor)

For the stew: Remove the beef from the marinade.  Strain the vegetables and the 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 med-high heat.  Sprinkle the beef with salt and toss with the flour; do not flour the beef until your ready to brown it.  Add the flour-coated beef to the hot pan and brown the meat well on all sides, 12-15 minutes.  May have to do this in batches due to the space it takes to brown the meat.   Remove meat from the pan to a baking sheet.  After browning the meat deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup of the reserved marinade, scraping up any browned bits.  Drain all of the liquid to a small bowl.  May have to deglaze twice during the process of cooking all of the meat to prevent a lot of browned bits burning in the pan.  

Next, add the bacon and cook until it gets browned and crispy, about 5 minutes.  Toss in the mushrooms, carrots, celery, garlic, onions, and season with salt.  Cook the mixture until it becomes softened and very aromatic, about 10 minutes.  (This is where my family started to come in the kitchen and want to know what I was cooking.)  Add the tomato paste and cook, 1-2 minutes.  Add the remaining cup of marinade and deglaze the pan, 1 minutes.  Add the beef.  Stir to combine and cook until the wine has reduced by half, 2 minutes. Add enough beef stock to cover the beef, toss in the bay leaves and the thyme bundle.  Cover the pan, bring the liquid to a boil and put the whole thing in the oven.

Cook for 2 hours.  During the last hour of cooking, add the potatoes.  Cover the pan with the lid and put the stew back in the oven to cook for another hour.  

Remove the pot from the oven and skim off any excess grease.  Serve with crusty bread.

Recipe adapted from: the Food Network Kitchens.    

Yield: 8 servings

I got this recipe off of the Food Network's site.  The link is above.  I didn't really change it a whole lot.  The biggest thing to consider when making this is the time it will involve.  That's why I made it on a night we were snowed in.  I knew nothing could draw my attention away from cooking with an errand they needed done.   The total cook time is almost 4 hours and the prep time is 6 hours.  So you will have to devote a lot of time to making this dish.  It is worth it though.  I believe this one of the best stews ever. 

Sherry
I will link this to:

Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farm 

Strut Your Stuff Saturday at Six Sisters Stuff 

Homemaking Linkup at Hope In Every Season 

Rooted in Thyme Simple and Sweet Fridays

The Best Blog Recipes link party