When the weather turns cool or rainy, the warm and rich, classic French Beef Bourguignon stew makes the perfect meal. Serve it over roasted or mashed potatoes, egg noodles, rice, or with a nice piece of buttered bread, and while any dry red wine will do, this stew is especially savory when cooked with a Burgundy wine.
Short on time? Add the carrots, mushrooms, bacon, and black pepper at the start of cooking. Otherwise, add these ingredients two hours before cooking is complete for a richer texture.
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 5-7 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low
INGREDIENTS:
- 3 pounds chuck roast
- 6 slices bacon
- 2 pounds button or cremini mushrooms
- 1 yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped (2 ½ cups)
- 4 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped (2 cups)
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 1 cup low sodium beef broth
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
PROCEDURE:
- Cut the chuck roast into two to three inch pieces and rub in the salt. Rinse the thyme under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Rinse the mushrooms under cold water, pat dry, and cut into quarters. Peel the carrots, remove the root end, and cut into two to three inch pieces. Trim both ends of the onion with a small knife, remove the peel, and roughly chop into one-inch pieces.
- On the stove, place a six-quart pot and turn to medium heat. Cook the bacon in batches, flipping occasionally until the bacon is golden brown on both sides (we’re looking for chewy, not burnt and crunchy!). Place the bacon on paper towels after cooking and cut into one-inch pieces when cooled.
- Remove and discard all but 2 ½ tablespoons of bacon fat from the pot and turn to medium/high heat. Place the chuck roast pieces in an even layer, leaving one to two inches between each piece. Sear the beef in batches, flipping occasionally until the pieces are golden brown on all sides. Once cooked, place them on a large plate. If the bacon fat begins to burn at any point, remove from the pot and replace it with canola or grapeseed oil.
- Cook the mushrooms until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked mushrooms to your bacon plate and place in the fridge. Cook the onions over medium until tender. Stir in the butter and flour, and cook for two minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot to keep the flour from burning. Add the wine and simmer until it no longer smells like alcohol (four to five minutes).
- Add the beef broth and bring to a simmer, before transferring the contents to your crockpot. Add the seared chuck roast on top.
- Turn the crockpot to the desired setting, cover, and set the timer. If cooking on high, set the timer for three hours, or if cooking on low, set the timer for six hours.
- Reset your time for two hours after adding the carrots, mushrooms, bacon, and black pepper.
- After the last two hours of cooking, use a fork to check the chuck roast. The beef is tender when it falls apart easily. If your stew needs more time, check every 30 minutes until ready.