Go Back
+ servings
easy beef bourguignon recipe - stew ready to serve
Print

Easy Beef Bourguignon Recipe

Enjoy an Easy Beef Bourguignon Recipe just like Julia Child's beef bourguignon! This traditional beef stew recipe is the perfect winter comfort food, full of tender, flavorful beef, smoky bacon, and a heavenly gravy.
Course Main Course
Cuisine French
Keyword beef bourguignon recipe, beef burgundy stew, beef stew, beef stew recipe, boeuf bourguignon, easy beef stew
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 15 minutes
Servings 6 (approx)
Calories 750kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 onion (large)
  • 1 carrot (large)
  • 6 slices smoked bacon
  • 3 lb chuck beef cut into roughly 2 inch dice
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil (or a little more as needed)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 tablespoon 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

For onions and mushrooms

  • 20 pearl onions small, approx
  • 1 lb white mushrooms (ideally relatively small)
  • 3 tablespoon unsalted butter divided
  • ½ cup beef stock
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 stem thyme
  • 2 stems parsley
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

Instructions

Preparing the stew

  • Slice 1 large onion, 1 large carrot, and 6 slices smoked bacon, and dice 3 lb. chuck beef, then pat dry. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
  • Warm a Dutch oven over medium heat and cook the bacon for a couple of minutes until it is just starting to brown. Add a little oil if needed. Remove from pan, set aside.
  • Add 2 Tbsp. olive oil to the pan and brown the beef chuck on all sides in batches. Remove from pan.
  • Next, add the onion and carrot and cook until the onions are just soft. Remove excess fat and add oil as necessary if browning too quickly.
  • Return the beef and bacon back to the pan, add ¼ tsp. salt and pepper, and sprinkle over 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour. Stir to coat the beef, then place the pan in the oven for 4 minutes.
  • Remove pan from oven, stir, then put back in for another 4 minutes. Remove pot from oven and reduce the heat to 325°F.
  • Crush 2 cloves of garlic and add to the pan, stir to cook a little.
  • Add 3 cups red wine, 2 cups beef stock, and 2 Tbsp. tomato paste, and stir gently. The liquid should fill just over the meat and vegetables. Add 2 bay leaves and 4 stems of thyme, then cover the pan and put in oven for 3-4 hours.

For sauteed onions and mushrooms

  • During the final hour of cooking, prepare 20 small pearl onions and 1 lb. white mushrooms. Peel the onions and cut the mushrooms into quarters, trimming the stems as needed.
  • Melt 1 ½ Tbsp. unsalted butter in a skillet and add the onions. Brown them for a few minutes then remove from heat to add ½ cup beef stock. Put back on heat, add 2 stems parsley, 1 stem thyme and 1 bay leaf (you can tie them together, or not, as you prefer).
  • Cook for around 30-40 minutes until the stock has been absorbed by the onions and they are tender. Remove and discard the herbs, then remove onions from skillet and set aside.
  • Clean out the skillet or use a separate one, and add the remaining 1 ½ Tbsp. butter and 1 tsp. olive oil for the mushrooms. Once the butter has melted and is starting to bubble, add the mushrooms. Toss to coat in the butter and cook a few minutes until the mushrooms start to brown. Set aside.
  • Once the beef is fork-tender, remove pan from oven. If there is a lot of liquid, strain it from the pot and simmer for a few minutes to reduce it. Add the liquid back to the pan, along with the pearl onions and mushrooms. Mix through, warm through a couple minutes on the stove, and serve.

Notes

  • This dish is best cooked in a large cast iron Dutch oven for easy transition between the stove and oven.
  • If you need a smaller quantity, you can halve the recipe 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 down the sauce at the end when making a smaller quantity.

Nutrition

Calories: 750kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 56g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 186mg | Sodium: 800mg | Potassium: 1688mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2044IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 7mg