Boeuf Bourguignon (Beef Bourguignon)

BOEUF BOURGUIGNON

6-ounce chunk of bacon

9- to 10-inch fireproof casserole, 3 inches deep

1 tablespoon olive oil or cooking oil

Slotted spoon

3 pounds lean stewing beef cut into 2-inch cubes

1 sliced carrot

1 sliced onion

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons flour

3 cups of a full-bodied young red wine, or a Chianti

2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cloves mashed garlic

1/2 teaspoon thyme

Crumbled bay leaf

Blanched bacon rind

18 to 24 small white onions, brown-braised in stock.

1 pound fresh mushrooms, quartered, sautéed in butter

Parsley sprigs

Remove rind, and cut bacon into lardoons (sticks, 1/4 inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 cups of water. Drain and dry.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Sauté the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you sauté the beef.

Dry the beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Sauté it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.

In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sautéing fat.

Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in the middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole and turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Stir in the wine and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.

When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat.

Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If it is too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for the seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. Recipe may be completed in advance to this point.

For immediate serving: Cover the casserole and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in its casserole or arrange the stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice and decorated with parsley.

For later serving: When cold, cover and refrigerate. About 15 to 20 minutes before serving, bring to the simmer, cover and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.

Serves 6.

PARTAKERS:  Don, Elise and I

APPROVALS: Thumbs up, good and savory

If there was ever a time to cook this dish it was today ~ talk about comfort food on a snowy day.  The house was full with savory aromas and my first bite into the juicy, tender beef just warmed my heart.  Don definitely loved it and gave me a thumbs up as he feasted on his seconds.  Elise liked it too but she  didn't touch the beef but only the mushrooms (she's doesn't eat beef).    I pulled this recipe off the internet as I looked for Julia Child's version of the recipe but I tweaked it and kinda altered it.  For instance I used baby carrots instead of slicing just a single one.  I'm not crazy at all over pearl onions (I believe that's what this recipe meant in "small onions") so I just took a regular onion and diced it.    Another dish that I like when in contains the meat (beef) vegetable (carrots) and the starch (rice).   I served it over a bed of plain white rice smothered with the sauce from the beef.   It was fun dish to make especially since I didn't have any else to do (I was done with my cleaning).   Spending time in the kitchen is very relaxing even if my back and feet hurt from all the standing.  Definitely savoring the weekend.