Boeuf Bourguinon

Burgundy Beef Stew
Our May 2012 Daring Cooks’ hostess was Fabi of fabsfood. Fabi challenged us to make Boeuf Bourguignon, a classic French stew originating from the Burgundy region of France.

My first ever Daring Kitchen challenge, specifically daring cook challenge. If you're interested in joining in the fun here's the link. Every month you get a new challenge to take on, there's two different challenges the baker and the cook. The baker will be later on this month, looking forward to it!

This month's challenge was Boeuf Bourguinon.
I have made beef stew, many many times, often with different variations in vegetables and spices. I also have odd reactions to wine so I often just stick to water, stock, and small amounts of cooking wine. This time I decided to follow the challenge and use up a whole bottle of wine.

For the whole challenge follow this link

I made very slight alterations so here is my version of the recipe

• 4 slices of thick cut bacon cut in strips
• 3 ish lbs of beef shoulder roast in cubes
• 1 sweet onion sliced
• 3 large carrots cut in chunks
• 3 tablespoons of flour
• 2 large cloves of garlic grated
• 3 cups/ 1 bottle of wine (750ml) - we used Barefoot- Cabernet Sauvignon, relatively inexpensive
• 2 cups of beef broth
• 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon of thyme

You will also need:

• 18-24 small onions
• 1 lb of mushrooms
• 1 cup of beef broth

One. I followed directions and blanched the bacon in 4 cups of water for 10 minutes, didn't really see the point, didn't render out too much fat, feel free to skip this step. Preheat your oven to 450F (Next time 350F- this was a crucial mistake on my part).

Two. In a dutch oven/large pot, cook your bacon until slightly golden. Spoon out and place aside.

Three. In the bacon fat cook your beef cubes in batches so as not to overload the pot. Once browned on all sides set aside.

Four. Add carrot chunks and onion slices, saute for about a minute, then add all the meat back into your pot. Add salt and pepper, about a teaspoon each. Add tablespoons of flour and stir.

Five. Directions mention to cook your meat in the oven for 4 minutes to create a crust, mine did not crust, so I will most likely skip that step.

Six. Add all liquid, wine, broth, tomato paste, garlic cloves, bay leaves and thyme. Stir everything and bring to a simmer.

Seven. Once simmering cover your pot with a lid or aluminum, add to lower level of your oven and cook for about 3 to 4 hours, until meat is tender.

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In the meantime cook your onions in some butter, simmer in beef broth for 20-25 minutes. 

Cook the mushrooms in butter until nicely browned. Set aside. 

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Ideally your meat should be nice and tender, your sauce becomes glossy and slightly thick and delicious. For me however my meat was definitely not that tender, and my sauce had cooked down tremendously. I think my Martha Stewart "Dutch Oven" may conduct heat a little too well and from now I will need to lower my cooking temperature, or maybe it's just our terrible apartment oven.