Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1 Tbsp good olive oil
8 oz smoked bacon (applewood), diced
2 1/2 lbs. chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes (chuck roast cut into 1" cubes)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. carrots, sliced into 1-inch chunks
2 onions, sliced
2 tsp chopped garlic (2 cloves)
1/2 cup Cognac
1 (750 ml) bottle of good dry red wine (Cote du Rhone or Pinot Noir)
2 cups beef broth
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 lb whole pearl onions, prepared (blanched and peeled; see Note)
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme)
3 Tbsp cornstarch
3 Tbsp water
1 lb fresh mushrooms, stems discarded and thickly sliced
1/2 cup freshly chopped flat-leafed parsley
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Directions: |
Directions:Preheat oven to 250º F.
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven (or pot than can go from stove-top to the oven).
Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate.
Dry the beef cubes with paper towels.
Sprinkle the dried beef cubes with salt and pepper.
In the same pan, on the same heat (medium),in batches in a single layer, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to 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.
Toss the carrots, sliced onions, 1 Tbsp of salt and 2 tsp of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are browned.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
Add the Cognac, stand back, and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol.
Put the meat, bacon and any juices that have accumulated, back into the pot.
Add the bottle of wine and enough beef broth to almost cover the meat.
Add the pearl onions, tomato paste and the 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 meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.
Sauté the mushrooms in 2 Tbsp of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned.
In a bowl mix the corn starch and water together until smooth.
Remove stew from the oven and bring to a boil on the top of the stove.
Add the cornstarch/water mixture and stir the stew until starting to thicken.
Add the mushrooms.
Lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Season to taste.
Before serving sprinkle with fresh parsley.
Serves 6 |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes:
NOTE:
How to Prepare Pearl Onions:
Trim the root ends of the onions. Blanch the onions in boiling water for about 30 seconds and then transfer them to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Pinch each onion at its stem end, and it should just slip out of its skin. If not, use a paring knife to remove the skin.
NOTE:
The oven is pre-heated to 250-degrees F. This is not a mistake. You are doing a slow roast on the stew in the oven....it can be done on stove-top if you wish (keep stew at a simmer for 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until meat is tender and vegetables cooked.).
I made this one year at the cottage for New Year's Eve dinner. It is wonderful...the gravy is so good you'll want to drink it!
Serve with a slice of garlic toast and a big red wine -- California Cabernet Sauvignon.
Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten with a few adjustments for my taste.
FARM MEMORY:
MOO-O-O-VE IT ON OUT!
In the summer, I remember every day about 4:00 PM we had to walk to the back pasture and “get the cows”.
One of the Uncles would walk back, with the dog and any of the kids that were visiting that day.
We’d round up the cows and take them back to the barn for milking.
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This recipe for CLASSIC BEEF BOURGUIGNON is from