WINTER menus
Boeuf bourguignon 200g medium carrots, cut into slices 2cm thick
60g celery, cut into slices 1 cm thick
“A centuries-old method of slow cooking or braising beef with a 20 baby onions, peeled but left whole
hearty red wine, the recipe probably started out as a practical 6 garlic cloves
solution to cooking beef that was too tough to cook in any other 1tsp black peppercorns, crushed
way. Codified by the great Auguste Escoffier, this dish has been 1 bouquet garni (a few parsley stalks, 4 bay leaves, 6 sprigs of thyme, tied
refined to become one of the truly classic French dishes.” together)
Difficulty rating: For the garnish
Serves (Yield): 4 1 tbsp olive oil
Preparation time: 1 hour plus 24 hours marinating 200g smoked streaky bacon, diced and blanched
Cooking time: 2 hours 400g button mushrooms, trimmed
1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Method
Marinating the beef
Bring the red wine to the boil and reduce by a third to remove the alcohol.
Leave to cool. Mix the beef pieces, carrots, celery, baby onions, garlic,
peppercorns and bouquet garni together and pour the cooled red wine over
them. Cover with cling film, refrigerate and leave to marinate for 24 hours.
Place a colander over a large bowl and put the beef mixture in it to drain
off the marinade. Leave for a minimum of 1 hour to remove excess liquid.
Separate the beef, vegetables and herbs and pat dry with kitchen paper.
Reserve the liquid.
Toasting the flour
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Sprinkle the flour on a baking tray and cook in
the oven for 8–10 minutes, until it has turned a wonderful pale brown colour.
Set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C.
Searing the beef
Season the beef with 4 pinches of salt. On a high heat, in a large, heavy-based
casserole, heat the olive oil and colour the beef pieces in it for 5–7 minutes
on each side. With a slotted spoon, transfer the beef pieces to a plate and
set aside. Add the drained vegetables and herbs to the casserole. Lower the
heat to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes, until lightly coloured.
Making the sauce
Spoon out the fat; add the toasted flour to the casserole and stir for a few
seconds. Then add the wine from the marinade little by little, whisking
constantly to incorporate it into the flour. The sauce should be smooth and
thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the beef pieces, bring the
sauce to the boil and skim. Cover with a lid and cook in the preheated oven
for 3 hours.
Finishing the sauce
Place a colander over a large saucepan and drain the Boeuf Bourguignon
through it. Put the saucepan on the heat and boil until the sauce has reduced
by half. Taste the sauce. Do not add any salt as you will be adding the smoked
Ingredients diced bacon later. Put the beef pieces back into the sauce.
1.2kg (4) ox cheek or shin, sinews removed, each cut into 3 pieces
1 heaped tbsp plain flour Cooking the garnish
2 tbsp olive oil Over a high heat in a medium non-stick frying pan, heat the olive oil and cook
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper the diced bacon in it for 1 minute. Add the button mushrooms and cook
for a further 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix the diced
For the marinade bacon and button mushrooms into the Boeuf Bourguignon. Sprinkle with the
1ltr full-bodied red wine such as Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon parsley and serve piping-hot.
78 RAYMOND BLANC’s SEASONS www.raymondblanc.com
RBS11_Classics 70-72.vp.indd 78 28/11/08 4:55:40 pm
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