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My Beef Bourguignon Recipe is a twist on Julia Child's beef bourguignon, full of tender beef, smoky bacon, and a heavenly gravy! This is the best beef burgundy stew out there. Richly flavorful, it's more than just beef stew for dinner: it's an experience!
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Best Beef Burgundy Stew
One of my favorite foods to make for my family is beef stew. Especially this beef burgundy stew. They're as wild about it as I am! Rich, flavorful beef in a savory red wine broth, packed with veggies and bacon... what's not to love?
If you have ever tried a variation of Julia Child's famous beef bourguignon recipe, then you know how drool-worthy it is. My take on it is a perfect choice for feeding your family as a special occasion dinner or a weekend meal everyone will crave again.
Love and effort go into making the perfect beef bourguignon recipe, and this is it. This masterfully delicious dish is worth every second spent in the kitchen!
FAQs
Beef bourguignon is a French beef stew recipe where beef is braised low and slow in a red wine gravy and is finished with mushrooms and onions. Also known as boeuf bourguignon, bœuf bourguignon, or beef burgundy, beef bourguignon comes from the Burgundy region of France. It is a popular French main dish, best known for its red wine burgundy sauce.
Chuck beef is the best cut of meat for beef bourguignon. It is the perfect stew meat as it becomes so tender and flavorful after braising.
The difference between other beef stew recipes and beef bourguignon is beef bourguignon's use of red wine as a braising liquid and gravy known as burgundy sauce.
Any red wine can be used to make beef bourguignon. Use a full-bodied red wine, such as a cabernet or pinot noir, for best results.
Use red cooking wine, a 1:1 mixture of white wine vinegar and grape juice, beef broth, or red grape juice if you do not want to use red wine to make beef bourguignon.
The best method for thickening beef bourguignon is to reduce the liquids. Over time, cooking the dish will reduce and thicken the burgundy sauce.
Recipe Tips
- Sear the beef before braising to help lock in the juices and add flavor to the dish. Don't skip this step!
- You can use solely wine rather than a combination of wine and stock, if you prefer.
- Be careful not to overcook the pearl onions and mushrooms. Cooking them separately allows you to monitor and not overcook them.
- Use pearl onions for the most wonderfully sweet and tender flavor. You can find them in the prepared foods area of your grocery store, ready-peeled, if you have trouble locating them.
- If the mushrooms aren't browning to your liking, increase the heat a little and stir regularly to help any excess moisture evaporate. This will help them brown.
What to Serve with Beef Bourguignon
Serve beef bourguignon with mashed potatoes, French bread, and a vegetable such as green beans. My favorite sides for beef bourguignon are:
Beef Soups and Stews
Try more of my favorite beef stew and soup recipes:
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📋 Recipe
Beef Bourguignon (Beef Burgundy Stew)
Equipment
- Wooden spoon
- Knife
Ingredients
- 1 large onion
- 1 large carrot
- 6 slices smoked bacon
- 3 pounds chuck beef cut into roughly 2-inch pieces
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil or a little more, as needed
- ¼ t salt
- ¼ Tablespoons pepper
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 3 cups red wine
- 2 cups beef stock or a little more, as needed
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 4 stems thyme
- 2 bay leaves
Mushrooms and Onions
- 20 small pearl onions approximately
- 1 lb white mushrooms small mushrooms
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- ½ cup beef stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 stem thyme
- 2 stems parsley
- 1 t olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 450°F. Slice onion, carrot, and bacon. Dice chuck beef and pat it dry. Then, warm your Dutch Oven over medium heat. Cook bacon until it is just starting to brown, a couple of minutes. Add oil if needed. When ready, remove from the pot and set aside.1 large onion, 1 large carrot, 6 slices smoked bacon, 3 pounds chuck beef, 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- Add oil to the pot and brown beef chuck roast on all sides in batches, then remove and set aside.2 Tablespoons olive oil, 3 pounds chuck beef
- Add onion and carrot. Cook until the onions are just soft. Remove excess fat and add oil as necessary if they brown too quickly.1 large onion, 1 large carrot
- Return beef and bacon back to the pot and season with salt and pepper. Then, sprinkle over all-purpose flour, and stir to coat the beef. Place the Dutch Oven in the oven for 4 minutes.6 slices smoked bacon, 3 pounds chuck beef, ¼ Tablespoons pepper, 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour, ¼ t salt
- After 4 minutes is up, remove the pot from the oven and stir. Put back in for another 4 minutes after stirring. Finally, remove the pot from the oven and reduce the heat to 325°F.
- Crush garlic and add to the pot. Stir to cook, then add red wine, beef stock, and tomato paste. Stir gently. The liquid should fill over the meat and vegetables. Add bay leaves and thyme, then cover and roast in the oven for 3 to 4 hours.2 cloves garlic, 3 cups red wine, 2 cups beef stock, 2 tablespoon tomato paste, 4 stems thyme, 1 bay leaf, 2 bay leaves
Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions
- In the last hour of the cooktime, prepare pearl onions and mushrooms by peeling the onions and cutting the mushrooms into quarters. Trim the stems as needed. When prepared, melt 1½ Tablespoons unsalted butter in a skillet and brown the pearl onions.20 small pearl onions, 1 lb white mushrooms, 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- Brown for a few minutes, then remove from the heat to add beef stock. Put back on the heat with parsley, thyme, and a bay leaf, and cook for 30-40 minutes until the stock is absorbed by the onions and they are tender. Finally, remove and discard the herbs, then remove the onions from the skillet and set aside.½ cup beef stock, 2 stems parsley, 1 stem thyme
- Clean the skillet or use another skillet. Add remaining 1½ Tablespoons butter and olive oil. Once the butter melts and is bubbling, add the mushrooms and toss to coat in the butter. Cook until they begin to brown, then set aside.3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 t olive oil, 1 lb white mushrooms
Assembling the beef bourguignon
- Finally, once the beef is fork-tender, remove the pot from the oven. If there is too much liquid, strain it from the pot and simmer it for a few minutes to reduce it, then add it back to the pot. Add pearl onions and mushrooms, and mix through. Enjoy!
Notes
- This dish cooks best in a large cast iron Dutch Oven for easy transition between the stove and oven.
- If you need a smaller amount, you can halve the recipe ingredients and keep everything else the same. Please note, this will make less burgundy sauce, so you may want to add slightly more liquid as it cooks. You won’t need to reduce the sauce at the end when making a smaller amount.
Nutrition
Photography by Caroline Williams.
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