Beef Bourguignonne
Okay, don’t ask me to pronounce it, but this is the subject of my latest culinary challenge. It’s another name for a classic French stew that tastes absolutely scrumptious.
Here are the ingredients:
1 pound boneless beef chuck roast cut into 3/4-inch cubes (you can actually buy it already cut up)
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced (I used 2 cloves)
1 1/4 cups burgundy (I used 1 1/2 cups of this wine)
1/2 cup beef broth (I used 3/4 cup – Campbell’s soup)
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
3/4 teaspoon dried marjoram, crushed
3 cups fresh mushrooms
4 medium carrots, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1/2 pound pearl onions (I found mine in the frozen vegetable section of the grocery store)
2 slices bacon, crisp-cooked, drained and crumbled (I didn’t use this, but I’m sure it would make the recipe even better)
3 cups hot cooked noodles
Snipped parsley (optional – I didn’t use this either)
Now what, well before I give you the steps, I should tell you that I followed the crockery-cooker directions, so that is all your getting here.
In a pan cook half of the meat in 1 tablespoon of the hot oil til meat is brown. Remove from pan and add remaining oil, remaining meat, the chopped onion, and garlic. Cook till meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat. Mix all the meat together in this mixture.
In your crock pot, layer mushrooms, carrots, and pearl onions. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca. Place meat mixture atop vegetables. Add bay leaves, thyme, marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Pour 1 1/4 cops burgundy and 1/2 cup broth over meat. Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 10 to 12 hours or till tender. Discard bay leaves. Stir in bacon. Serve with noodles.
The smell of this dish alone will make your mouth water. I did all the preparation the night before and put the crock pot in the refrigerator until the morning. Before I left for work a returned the crock pot to the cooker and let it cook all day while I was at work. I would highly recommend this recipe (as long as you like beef).
By the way, I should mention that I used the Better Homes and Garden New Cook Book as a guide for this one. Enjoy.
Until the next post, don’t forget to stop and smell the French stew…