There are several different methods how to prepare the beef stew, my favourite is as per following. Cook with me and enjoy this winter culinary piece of heaven. Bon Appetite!
Shopping List
Plain flour
Olive oil
2 carrots, peeled, washed and sliced
6 shallots, peeled and diced
100g of bacon, sliced
4 cloves of garlic, crushed, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon of tomato purée
½ liter of Burgundy red wine (full bodied wine as Chianti or Bordeaux optional)
½ liter of good quality beef stock
200g of champignons (or half of the amount of dried mushrooms soaked in water), diced
Bouquet garni (6 branches of thyme, 2 branches of rosemary, 2 bay leaves, 3 whole black peppers)
Instructions
Season the beef with salt and black pepper, dust it with the flour. In the heavy based ovenproof casserole pan baked the beef with the oil on high heat until it becomes golden. Take the meat out.
Stir in the bacon, carrot, shallots and garlic and sauté on medium heat until golden. Add tomato purée and mix.
Add the beef back into the pan and pour in the wine. Reduce.
Next, pour in the beef stock and reduce again.
Then, add the champignons and bouquet garni and cover with a lid. The whole stew should be covered in the juicy sauce, so you can see the tops of the meat cubes.
Simmer gently on low heat at least for 2 hours. You can either cook it on the stove or in the oven on 180 degrees.
The mixture should be bubbling beautifully, the sauce should become rich and compact, the meat should become very tender. Serve with french baguettes or sautéed potatoes.
Makes 5 serves.