Beef bourguignon, also popular as beef Burgundy or Boeuf à la Bourguignonne, is an eminent and time-honored recipe in French cuisine. Beef is typically braised in beef broth and red wine, conventionally red Burgundy, to make this traditional French stew. However, various other flavors are also added to the broth.

This dish was originally considered one of the most popular peasant dishes that have been incorporated gradually into Grande cuisine. 

History  

Beef Bourguignon is presumably the meticulous dish in which the beef is cooked slowly in broth and wine started off as a fast method for tenderizing the meat that is otherwise quite tough.

Augsute Escoffier, the great French Chef, is behind the invention of the traditional recipe of Beef Bourguignon, and this recipe is still being followed by most of the people. However, this recipe has been subtly changed several times due to significant changes in food supplies and equipments used for cooking, but Beef bourguignon is still the customary dish in French cuisine.

Preparation

This iconic dish includes aromatic vegetables such as carrot, shallots and garlic. These vegetables are usually chopped and stewed in wine and broth along with flavorful herbs and spices namely parsley, bay leaves, thyme and clove. These herbs and spices may be tied in a bouquet garni and added to the simmering stew.

Browned beef chunks, wine and broth are simmered with all the other ingredients to provide the meaty flavor to the broth. Once all the flavors are attained by the broth, the beef chunks and chopped vegetables are strained and kept aside. The remaining liquid is passed through a fine sieve and all the whole spices are discarded. Pearl onion and porcini mushroom are the true French components that are added to almost all French stews along with strained broth for some extra taste. In this dish these two ingredients are also added to the liquid that is simmered until reduced to half.

Shiitake mushroom, Pinot Noir (wine) and frozen pearl onion are the items that can be used to make Beef bourguignon if the conventional ingredients such as dried porcini and red burgundy and fresh pearl onion are not easily available. Salt pork or Bacon may also be added, but then care should be taken while adding the salt, as salt pork contains enough salt to make the broth flavorful.

To finish off with the cooking of sauce, a butter-flour mix is added to the liquid to achieve an intensely flavored, dark-colored, smooth sauce.

While serving the dish, the sauce is poured over the cooked vegetables and beef chunks.

Serving

Beef burgundy is popularly served as supper meal along with salad and some bread. Boiled potatoes and noodles are some of the traditional side dishes with this beef stew.

Trivia

Beef burgundy was described as one of the most delectable dishes prepared with beef by “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”.