Recipes

Beef bourguignon - Carmel Somers’ recipe

Carmel Somers
Sat Feb 24 2018 - 06:00
Serves: 4
Course: Main Course
Ingredients
  •  
  • 1kg topside, chuck or any other braising steak, cubed
  • Half a bottle of red wine
  • 150g streaky unsmoked bacon, diced
  • 2 onions, peeled and sliced
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • Bunch of parsley with stalks
  • 3 sprigs of thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tbsp seasoned flour
  • Beef dripping or olive oil
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 150ml meat stock
  • Bouquet garni
  • For the garnish
  • 250g small mushrooms
  • 12 shallots or baby onions

This takes a little effort but is well worth it. I would recommend you double the recipe while you’re making it and freeze some portions for a later date. Nothing beats having dinner ready after a long walk, and what better than this classic dish. I like to have this with fresh pasta, so I always have a supply from Iago’s in the freezer.

1. Place the meat in a bowl with half the wine, the sliced onions, garlic, parsley stalks, thyme and the bay leaf and mix well. Cover with a plate and leave overnight in the fridge to marinade.

2. The next day, drain the meat and vegetables in a colander, saving the marinade juices. Separate out the pieces of beef and toss in the seasoned flour.

3. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of fat or oil and the diced bacon and cook over a very low heat until the bacon fat starts to run. Add the marinaded onions and garlic and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Transfer to a casserole pot.

4. In the same frying pan, brown the floured meat cubes on all sides in some more oil or fat and add them to the onions and bacon as you go (you should end up doing the meat in two batches).

5. Add the tomato puree to the frying pan along with the marinade, stock and the remaining wine and bring to the boil, scraping the pan to loosen any bits. Pour it over the meat. 4. Bring casserole pan to the boil and taste, adding a little more salt and lots of black pepper. Cover with parchment paper and a tight fitting lid and cook in a slow oven 140 degrees for 2-2½ hours. For the last hour of cooking, check the meat every 15 minutes for tenderness.

5. While this is all happening, cook the shallots in a little oil for 10 minutes until they are just soft through and season well with salt and pepper. Next, cook the mushrooms in a hot pan with a little oil and salt and pepper until cooked through.

6. When the beef is ready, top with the the onions, mushrooms and plenty of chopped parsley.

7. Serve with fresh pasta and garnish with a little more chopped parsley.

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