Breakin Down Boeuf Bourguignon....

So ok, reading the Julia Child recipe for the first time is ubber intimidating. A LOT of steps...but after you break it down, it's really not too bad. So I thought I'd give you the recipe with some pictures to maybe take the edge off...and before you know it, you'll have your own Boeuf! :)

Boeuf Bourguignon

by Julia Child

• 6 ounces bacon
• 1 Tbsp. olive or cooking oil
• 3 pounds lean stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes (don't skimp, you'll want leftovers!)
• 1 sliced carrot
• 1 sliced onion
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• 3 cups full-bodied, young red wine, such as Chianti
• 2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp. thyme
• Crumbled bay leaf
• Blanched bacon rind
• 18 to 24 small white onions, brown-braised in stock
• 1 pound quartered fresh mushrooms, sauteed in butter
• Parsley springs

Remove rind from bacon, and cut bacon into lardons (sticks, 1/4 inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts of water. Drain and dry. (No pictures...it wasn't too pretty:)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Saute the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you saute the beef.

Dry the stewing beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Saute it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sauteing fatReturn the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of the preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to over for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole, and turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Stir in the wine, and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. (Careful not to open the wine and spill it all over your kitchen...oh wait, that was just me...)

Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily. (and it tastes heavenly!)

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.

(We don't eat mushrooms, so we skipped them. And I didn't know what 'brown braised' meant...so I took it as to boil the onions down in beef stock until it was evaporated. Worked for me!)

When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat.

Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming the additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. Recipe may be completed in advance to this point.

For immediate serving: Cover the casserole and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in its casserole, or arrange the stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice and decorated with parsley.

For later serving: When cold, cover and refrigerate. About 15 to 20 minutes before serving, bring to simmer, cover and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.

And you get:

That's as attractive as I can get after 4 hours in the kitchen;) And let me tell you: That casserole pan came clean with a wipe of the sponge! It was amazing:) And so was the dinner...try it out for the ultimate indulgent comfort food!! My only change is I might use a little less beef stock next time and a little sugar. I just remember the one I had in France being a touch sweeter.

Enjoy!!!