Beef Bourguignon

The whole dish lives or dies on the first ten minutes. Brown the beef properly, in batches, in a pan hot enough to hurt, and you build the dark base that three hours of gentle cooking turns into gravy. Crowd the pan and the meat steams grey, and no amount of wine rescues it later.

1. 1

   Pat the beef dry and season it. Wet meat will not brown, it will boil, and this is the step everything else rests on.

   For this step

   • 1 kg beef shin or chuck
   • 2 cups (500 ml) beef stock
2. 2

   Render the lardons in a heavy casserole until crisp, lift them out, and brown the beef in the fat in three or four batches. Do not rush this.

   For this step

   • 1 kg beef shin or chuck
   • 150 g smoked bacon lardons
   • 2 cups (500 ml) beef stock
3. 3

   Lower the heat, soften the shallots, carrots and garlic in the same pot, then stir in the flour and tomato puree and cook for a minute.

   For this step

   • 12 small shallots
   • 2 carrots
   • 3 garlic cloves
   • 2 tbsp (16 g) plain flour
   • 1 tbsp tomato puree
4. 4

   Pour in the wine, scraping every brown patch off the bottom, and let it bubble hard for 3 minutes to lose its raw edge.

   For this step

   • 2 cups (500 ml) red wine
5. 5

   Return the beef and lardons, add the stock and herbs, bring to a bare simmer, cover, and cook at 150C for 2.5 to 3 hours.

   For this step

   • 1 kg beef shin or chuck
   • 150 g smoked bacon lardons
   • 2 cups (500 ml) beef stock
6. 6

   Fry the mushrooms in butter until golden and stir them through for the last 20 minutes so they keep their bite.

   For this step

   • 250 g button mushrooms
   • 2 tbsp (28 g) butter
7. 7

   Rest it off the heat for 15 minutes before serving. The sauce thickens and the beef relaxes.

   For this step

   • 1 kg beef shin or chuck
   • 2 cups (500 ml) beef stock

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