Traditional Bœuf bourguignon Recipe

Welcome back to the Velvet Runway and to the second of our traditional French Recipes, the famous Bœuf Bourguignon (pronounced boar-gee-nyon) Recipe. 

This beef and red wine stew originated in the Burgundy region, famous for its wines. It was originally a popular dish with Burgundian villagers and was often served at festive occasions. But it quickly became the favourite Sunday dish of the French, and although it was originally known as “estouffade de bœuf“, it became “bœuf bourguignon” when it became popular abroad, to emphasise its French origin.

Traditionally, boeuf bourguignon is prepared with wine from the Burgundy region of France, such as pinot noir and charolais, but if you can’t get your hands on one of these, go for a good dry, fruity red wine (although don’t use a really good wine, that would be a waste!) And for the meat, you probably won’t be able to get your hands on charolais (meat from Burgundy), but any slow-cooked cut will do (chuck, cheek, gite). 

Everyone has their own way of cooking the dish, sometimes adding mushrooms or lard, but the base is always some cut of meat, garlic, onions, a bouquet garni of bay leaves, thyme, sage and parsley and, of course, red wine! Although it was originally served with bread brushed with garlic, it is now eaten with potatoes, mashed potatoes or even pasta… and still with bread to soak up the sauce, évidemment ! 

Insider Tip: While there’s nothing really difficult about its preparation, the dish takes a long time to cook, and the longer it’s left to simmer over a low heat, with periods of rest, the better it will be.

Boeuf bourguignon is a true classic of French cuisine, and while it can now be found in restaurants all over the world and is served by Michelin-starred chefs, it’s still a simple, hearty stew, and a great way to get the whole family together for Sunday lunch.

Traditional Bœuf bourguignon Recipe

Here’s a traditional recipe for beef bourguignon (serves 4 people)

Ingredients for Traditional Bœuf bourguignon

• 1 kg braised beef  (the general rule is 200-250g of meat per person). 
• 150g lard 
• 2 large onions. 
• 2 carrots
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 250g button mushrooms
• 1 bottle of red wine (ideally Burgundy, such as pinot noir). 
• 200 ml beef stock
• 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf, sage and parsley)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

Instructions:

Prepare the meat: 

• If you’ve bought fresh pork lard, cut it into small pieces of about 1 cm (to make lardons).
• Cut the beef into medium-sized pieces of about 4 cm. 
• Trim off any large chunks of fat (but not all the fat as it will melt anyway). 

Prepare the vegetables:

• Wash, peel and cut the carrots into 1 cm slices.
• Peel and quarter the onions. 
• Wash the mushrooms and cut off the stems. 
• Chop the garlic cloves.

Cook the meat: 

• Heat a bit of olive oil in a casserole dish (preferably cast iron) and cook the lard over a high heat. Set aside. 
• Sear the pieces of beef quickly over a high heat in the same pan, using the leftover fat from the lard. Brown it on all 4 sides if possible, then add 1 tablespoon of flour and mix well. Set aside. 

Cook the vegetables: 

• In the same dish as you cooked the meat, cook the onions and carrots until lightly browned.
• Add the chopped garlic and sauté for a further minute.

Assemble everything in the casserole dish:

• Return the meat and bacon to the casserole dish.
• Sprinkle with the rest of the flour and mix well to coat all the ingredients and leave to cook for a few minutes. 
• Pour the red wine and beef stock into the casserole and stir well to loosen the juices at the bottom.
• Add the bouquet garni and bring to the boil before reducing the heat and letting the dish simmer on a low heat for about 2 hours, until the meat is tender. 
• About 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time, add the mushrooms to the dish.

Note: on a stovetop, you can leave the dish on a low heat for up to 3 hours, checking periodically that it doesn’t dry out or stick to the bottom of the casserole dish. The same applies if you cook the dish in the oven (160°C).  In a slow cooker, you can leave it on for up to 8-9 hours on a low heat. 

Season and serve: 

• Remove the bouquet garni.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
• Serve with potatoes, mashed potatoes or even pasta, with a little fresh bread and a good bottle of Burgundy wine. 

Final Thoughts on our Traditional Bœuf bourguignon Recipe

The preconceived idea about boeuf bourguignon is that it’s complicated and out of the reach of amateur cooks who don’t know much about French cuisine. But bear in mind that this is a stew and, like all stews, once you’ve done all the preparation, it’s actually quite easy to make.  

I hope you enjoyed this feature with our ‘Traditional Bœuf bourguignon Recipe‘.

I will be back soon with more style, lifestyle and travel inspiration and don’t forget to subscribe to make sure you never miss a post,

 

With love,