Boeuf Bourguignon
Ingredients
Marinade
- 2 kg joint beef trimmed of fat and cut into generous bite-size pieces
- 750 ml bottle red wine
- 2 large cloves garlic grated or finely sliced
- 6 bay leaves
- freshly milled sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Boeuf Bourguignon
- 300 ml good quality beef stock
- 1 large tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp herbes de provence
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- large knob butter
- 10 echalion banana shallots, peeled and sliced vertically
- 6 slices good quality thick smoked bacon cut into chunks
- 12 chestnut mushrooms cleaned and cut in half
- 1 large glug of brandy or cognac
- 1 tbsp corn flour
- sea salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste
Instructions
Marinade
- Trim fat from the beef joint and cut into generous bite size cubes.Season well will sea salt and freshly milled black pepper. Add the bay leaves, grated garlic and cover with red wine. Mix well, cover with cling film and place in the fridge for 24 hours or so.
Boeuf Bourguignon
- Remove the marinated beef and drain in a colander, ensuring that you save the wine. Allow the chucks of beef to reach room temperature to ensure that the meat is as tender as possible.
- In a large frying pan, heat up 2 tbsp olive oil at a medium/high heat, and add half of the butter. Once melted and starting to brown, add as much of the beef which comfortably fits into the pan. Turn over using silicone tongs until lightly browned all over. Transfer meat to a large casserole dish, and cook the remainder of the beef in batches (adding a little more oil/butter as required).
- Next, add the halved echalion shallots and bacon to the ban, and sweat down on a medium heat for 2-4 minutes, or until the bacon is cooked and shallots have softened. Transfer into the casserole and mix well.
- Preheat fan assisted oven to 200C.
- Then, add the reserved wine marinade and beef stock to the pan, (and any additional wine not used in the marinade marinade), season well, then and bring to the boil. Add a heaped tablespoon Dijon mustard, herbes de provences and mix well using a bell whisk. Simmer the sauce for 10 mins or so then add a blend of cornflour and water to thicken the sauce. Stir well.
- Pour into the casserole dish, making sure all the meat is covered and cook for 25 mins, then reduce heat to 160C. After 90 mins, remove from oven and add the mushrooms and a glug of flaming brandy (or cognac) and stir thoroughly.
- Return to oven and cook for a further 30-40 mins, then serve piping hot.
Notes
This is not the opportunity to whip out a precious bottle of vintage claret - a bottle of wine at the modest end of the spectrum will suffice. Basically, if you are willing to drink it, cook with it - that's my approach anyhow. Too cheap can result in wine being a lot weaker, thinner, and more acidic which will impact the flavour of the dish.
As an alternative to chestnut mushrooms, why not try shiitake? I have used on a couple of occasions and works a treat.
Finally, do not worry if the whole casserole cannot be devoured on the first sitting, it reheats just fine and some would argue that it tastes even better the second time around. Gently simmering in a pan until piping hot instead of a zap in the microwave is always preferred.
As an alternative to chestnut mushrooms, why not try shiitake? I have used on a couple of occasions and works a treat.
Finally, do not worry if the whole casserole cannot be devoured on the first sitting, it reheats just fine and some would argue that it tastes even better the second time around. Gently simmering in a pan until piping hot instead of a zap in the microwave is always preferred.