Boeuf A La Bourguignon

Total Time: 4 hrs Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 3 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 3 cups dry red
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1/4 cup
• 1 large onion, quartered with the root end attached
• 2 carrots, cut into 3-inch pieces
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 12 sprigs fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 10 black peppercorns
• 4 whole cloves
• 4 allspice berries
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 lbs well-marbled beef chuck, cut into 2 1/2-inch pieces
• 8 ounces thick slab bacon
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus
• 1 tablespoon softened unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• all-purpose flour, for dredging, plus
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 lb white pearl onion, blanched and carefully peeled
• 1 pinch sugar
• 1 lb small cremini mushrooms or 1 lb button mushroom
• 1 tablespoon flour

Recipe

• 1 in a large bowl, combine the red , beef stock, , onion, carrots, garlic, parsley sprigs, thyme, rosemary, peppercorns, cloves, allspice, and bay leaf and stir well. add the beef and stir. refrigerate, covered, overnight.
• 2 drain the beef and reserve the marinade and vegetables separately. pat the beef dry with paper towels. set the beef and vegetables aside.
• 3 preheat the oven to 275 degrees f.
• 4 remove the outer rind of the slab bacon. cut the bacon into lardons: 1 inch long strips about 1/4- inch thick. in a small saucepan, cover the lardons and the rind with cold water and bring to a boil. lower the heat, and simmer for 3 minutes. drain the lardons and rind, pat them dry, and reserve both.
• 5 heat 2 tablespoons of butter and olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. add the lardons and cook, stirring, until crisp and their fat has rendered. using a slotted spoon, transfer the lardons to paper towels to drain.
• 6 season the beef with salt and pepper, dredge in the flour, and shake off any excess.
• 7 raise the heat to high and, working in batches, brown the beef. using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a plate. pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat and return to high heat. add the reserved vegetable mixture and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, about 5 minutes.
• 8 return all of the browned beef to the pot. add the reserved marinade liquid, and reserved bacon rind. bring to a boil and season with salt and pepper. transfer the stew to the oven and cook, covered, until the beef is very tender, about 3 hours.
• 9 remove the stew from the oven. using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a plate. strain the liquid and discard the solids. return the beef and strained broth to the dutch oven with the lardons.
• 10 put the pearl onions in a skillet with 1 tablespoon of butter and the sugar. cover the onions with water and season with salt and pepper. simmer the onions over medium-high heat until almost tender. raise heat to high, and reduce the cooking liquid to about 2 tablespoons. continue to cook the onions, shaking the pan over the heat, until the onions are golden brown and glazed. transfer the onions to the stew.
• 11 heat 3 tablespoons of butter in another skillet over medium-high heat. add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. cook the mushrooms, tossing often, until golden brown, about 7 minutes. transfer the mushrooms to the stew.
• 12 in a small bowl, cream together the tablespoon of softened butter with the tablespoon of flour. roll the mixture into pea-sized pieces.
• 13 bring the stew to a simmer and, while stirring gently, add enough beurre manie, bit by bit, to lightly thicken the sauce.
• 14 divide the stew among 6 shallow soup plates and garnish each with a crouton. serve immediately with pasta or boiled potatoes.