This Beef Bourguignon, or "Boeuf Bourguignon" dish is one of the grand classics of French Cuisine, for good reason. Tender chunks of braised beef that melt in your mouth. A rich, winey sauce that envelops the beef and the supple vegetables. A dish you can't resist saying "yum" after just one bite - just like in the movie, Julie & Julia.
Julia Child became famous for her Boeuf Bourguignon and it is not hard to see why - meat that has been stewed for hours in a red wine sauce until it melts in your mouth it nothing short of incredible.
I have learnt to make Boeuf Bourguignon the way that my husband, French Chef, Sébastien Giannini has taught me. I am honored to share our family recipe with you. You will certainly pick up a few French cooking tips along the way. Allons-y!
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Frequently asked questions
Both are very similar - beef stewed in red wine for hours. Boeuf Bourguignon originates from the Burgundy region of France while La Daube Provençale is from Provence. La Daube Provençale has orange zest and olives for a distinctive South of France flavor. La Daube Provençale is very similar to la Daube Niçoise as well.
Drying the meat (patting it down with a paper towel) is an essential step to get a good sear on the beef. If you don't pat down the meat, it won't sear.
While the process is spread over couple days, the actually active prep time is less than an hour. It is important to let the beef marinate for 24 hours in the fridge before cooking. I also recommend serving Boeuf Bourguignon the day after you have cooked it. The flavors are so much richer!
Beef Bourguignon is traditionally served with boiled potatoes. That being said, many love to serve the hearty dish with pasta as well. The South of France leans more towards pasta as an accompaniment, Northern France favors potatoes.
Ingredients List
6 Pounds trimmed beef brisket ( I used this Beef Brisket Flat from D'Artagnan)
1 cup of chopped, high quality bacon (I used this Smoked Applewood Bacon from D'Artagnan)
4 shallots, peeled and cut into strips, lengthwise
4 large carrots, diced
2 branches of celery , diced
2 tbsps Herbes de Provence (in the absence of Herbes de Provence use thyme and rosemary)
1 star anise
4 bay leaves
3 cloves of garlic
½ cup flour, all purpose
4 cups of mushrooms, cleaned and trimmed (I used this Mushroom Chef Mix from D'Artagnan)
2 tsps sugar
1 cup beef stock
1 cup Veal Demi Glace (I used this one from D'Artagnan)
1 bottle of red wine (Pinot Noir as a preference)
2 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes
*I am grateful to D'Artagnan for sponsoring this post. I have used D'Artagnan products for years at home and I am so excited to partner with them - they truly offer an exceptional quality of French meats and products.
Equipment Needed:
Cast Iron Dutch Oven - I use this Le Creuset 6.75 QT
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How to Serve Beef Bourguignon
About thirty minutes before the beef is done (recipe card below), you can start the potatoes.
Peel and quarter the potatoes, length wise. If you want to get fancy you can shape the potato quarters into lozenges - also known as Potatoes "Tournées" - a shape that every young apprentice learns to master in France.
Place the potatoes into a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil.
Le Chef's Tip - Always start your potatoes in cold water - the starch holds up better when cooking this way and the potatoes keep their shape and consistency.
Keep at a low boil for about 15 minutes - until the potatoes are tender and you can stick a fork in them easily. (If they break in half when you stick the fork in, they are overdone.)
I like to ladle portion of the Beef Bourguignon into a shallow dish ( I love my Le Creuset Pasta bowls for this) then top with a few potatoes before spooning more Beef Bourguignon over the top for more sauce. The sauce is sooo good!
Top with a small pinch of French Sea Salt
What to serve with Beef Bourguignon
I highly recommend serving with a homemade French Baguette - my super simple 2 hour recipe is perfect for making at the same time as your Beef Bourguignon cooks. There is nothing better than a crusty piece of bread dipped in the rich, winey sauce of Beef Bourguignon. Simply turn the oven up to 460 degrees once your Beef Bourguignon is done to cook the baguettes while the dish cools down. Don't forget to add the dish of water into the oven to create steam for the baguette!
A Burgundian red wine that is coarse yet fruity is best served with Beef Bourguinon. I personally love a Pinot Noir.
Reheating Beef Bourguignon
La Beef Bourguignon is even better the day after it was cooked. If serving for a dinner party or special occasion, feel free to marinate the beef one day, cook it the next day then store it over night in the fridge before serving it on day 3! You can skim the fat from the top, place the dutch oven on the stove top uncovered and bring to a slow simmer before serving.
Other Le Chef's Wife recipes you will enjoy:
Daube Provençale (like Beef Bourguignon but inspired by the South of France with orange zest and olives, served over pasta. Delicious!)
I hope you have enjoyed our family recipe for Beef Bourguignon. If you make this recipe I would appreciate a star rating on the recipe and a comment below - I love hearing from this community!
About Le Chef's Wife
Bonjour! I am Anina Belle. I translate the fancy cooking of my Michelin-star trained French Chef Husband, Le Chef, into easy to make dishes that busy people with no culinary training (like me!) can make at home. We have two young kids (5 and 2) and I have a full time job in hospitality in addition to this blog. I strongly believe that even busy people deserve to eat well at home.
I share our home cooking on Instagram, pinterest and tiktok. Sign up for my newsletter to be the first to receive my new recipes and have advance access to cooking classes. I look forward to cooking with you!
Au plaisir,
Le Chef's Wife
Print
Classic Beef Bourguignon
- Prep Time: 45
- Cook Time: 2.5
- Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes + resting time
- Yield: 6-8
- Category: French
- Method: Braised
- Cuisine: French
Description
This Beef Bourguignon, or "Boeuf Bourguignon" dish is one of the grand classics of French Cuisine, for good reason. Tender chunks of braised beef that melt in your mouth. A rich, winey sauce that envelops the beef and the supple vegetables. A dish you can't resist saying "yum" after just one bite - just like in one of my favorite movies, Julie & Julia.
Ingredients
- 6 Pounds trimmed beef brisket ( I used this Beef Brisket Flat from D'Artagnan)
- 1 cup of chopped, high quality bacon (I used this Smoked Applewood Bacon from D'Artagnan)
- 4 shallots, peeled and cut into strips, lengthwise
- 4 large carrots, diced
- 2 branches of celery , diced
- 2 tbsps Herbes de Provence (in the absence of Herbes de Provence use thyme and rosemary)
- 1 star anise
- 4 bay leaves
- 3 cloves of garlic
- ½ cup flour, all purpose
- 4 cups of mushrooms, cleaned and trimmed (I used this Mushroom Chef Mix from D'Artagnan)
- 2 tsps sugar
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 cup Veal Demi Glace (I used this one from D'Artagnan)
- 1 bottle of red wine (Pinot Noir as a preference)
- 2 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes
Instructions
The day before...
La mise en place:
- Chop your beef into cubes, about 2 inches thick.
- Chop the carrots, celery and garlic for the marinade.
- In a dutch oven, place the beef, carrots, celery, garlic, herbes de Provence, star ainse and bay leaves.
- Top with a half bottle of robust red wine. We are looking for a wine with lots of tannins like a cabernet franc, syrah, mourvèdre or grenache. I like to use a French Pinot Noir too that has light fruit but lots of body.
- Using a big spoon, fold the ingredients over eachother so it is nicely mixed.
- Cover your dutch oven with plastic wrap (so it is air tight) and set in the fridge for 24 hours.
Cooking La Daube Provençale:
- Set a pasta strainer inside a big bowl. Transfer the contents of your dutch oven into the strainer - making sure to keep all the juice in the bowl! You will use this later.
- Remove the chunks of marinated beef from the strainer and pat dry with paper towels. You must dry the meat! If you skip this step it will not sear.
- Lay the dried pieces of meat flat on a cutting board and lightly dust with flour. I like to use a sieve for this - you don't want too much flour.
- There is no cutting corners with a Beef Bourguignon, but I promise you it will be worth it!
- Make sure to keep the carrots and celery from the marinade as well. Do however, discard the star anise.
- Wipe down your dutch oven and put it back on the burner at medium high heat with a drizzle of olive oil.
- In small batches, sear the meat so that there is a light crust on each piece. Allow the meat to brown and remove the pieces once the meat begins to render liquid in the dish. You don't want the meat to boil!
- Use tongs , not a spoon, to place the meat in the dutch oven because you want to make sure you are not adding extra liquid.
- **Careful not to add more pieces of meat than can fit in one layer in your dutch oven - you want each piece to brown. This may take several batches to sear all of the meat.
- Repeat until all the meat has been seared, making sure to continuously scrape the bottom of your dish with a rubber spatula - this is where all the flavor is! Set the meat aside.
- **Le Chef's tip - use a marinade brush to wipe the sides of the dutch oven every so often to keep the sides clean
- In the bottom of your dutch oven on medium heat, add the bacon. Allow to brown and then add the mushrooms. Sprinkle 2 tsps of sugar on top and sautée until slightly caramelized on medium heat, stirring frequently. Add the veal demi glace and the beef stock.
- Add the seared meat & marinated vegetables back into the dutch oven as well as the bay leaf.
- Add the remaining half bottle of wine and the marinade liquid that you kept in the bowl. Careful not to fill the dutch oven too full.
- Stir a few times, folding the ingredients over each other so that it is all well mixed
- Set your dutch oven on the middle rack of your oven, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 2.5 hours.
- Stir every half hour or so.
How to serve Beef Bourguignon
About thirty minutes before the beef is done you can start the potatoes.
Peel and quarter the potatoes, length wise. If you want to get fancy you can shape the potato quarters into lozenges - also known as Potatoes "Tournées" - a shape that every young apprentice learns to master in France.
Place the potatoes into a large pot of cold water and bring to a boil.
Le Chef's Tip - Always start your potatoes in cold water - the starch holds up better when cooking this way and the potatoes keep their shape and consistency.
Keep at a low boil for about 15 minutes - until the potatoes are tender and you can stick a fork in them easily. (If they break in half when you stick the fork in, they are overdone.)
I like to ladle portion of the Beef Bourguignon into a shallow dish ( I love my Le Creuset Pasta bowls for this)then top with a few potatoes before spooning more Beef Bourguignon over the top for more sauce. The sauce is sooo good!
Top with a small pinch of French Sea Salt.
The fragrance from this dish is absolutely delectable!
Notes
Reheating Beef Bourguignon
La Beef Bourguignon is even better the day after it was cooked. If serving for a dinner party or special occasion, feel free to marinate the beef one day, cook it the next day then store it over night in the fridge before serving it on day 3! You can skim the fat from the top, place the dutch oven on the stove top uncovered and bring to a slow simmer before serving.
Other Le Chef's Wife recipes you will enjoy:
Daube Provençale (like Beef Bourguignon but inspired by the South of France with orange zest and olives, served over pasta. Delicious!)
I hope you have enjoyed our family recipe for Beef Bourguignon. If you make this recipe I would appreciate a star rating on the recipe and a comment below - I love hearing from this community!
Maureen says
This is the best recipe ever! I made it for Christmas Eve, and everyone devoured it!! Preparing this over three days makes a huge difference! Thank you so much for making the time to share so much on IG. It never goes unnoticed and is greatly appreciated! Merci beaucoup!! xxx
Angela says
This sounds delicious, can I elimtthe potatoes and serve this with mashed potatoes?
Will the sauce come out shiny?
Will K. says
I’m making this tonight. I just put the meat in the marinade. I used a chuck roast because that’s what I could get, plus chuck is less expensive than brisket in my neck of the woods. I did notice you didn’t mention what to do with the shallot- in the marinade, or sautéed with the bacon and mushrooms? I’m going with the latter, but I can tell either way this is going to be awesome- I love a good braise!
lechefswife says
Good evening Will, Thank you for sharing a photo of your Bourguignon on Instagram. It looks like it turned out great! The shallots go in the marinade and also in the sautée. I will revise the recipe if it is not clear. My apologies! Happy HOlidays, Anina Belle