This past Friday, Randy and I went to dinner and to see a movie, he let me pick, so Julie & Julia it was! I’ve been wanting to go see this movie for weeks now. It was about a girl named Julie who loved cooking, she said it relieved her stress from work. She would come home and cook elaborate gourmet meals. She loved Julia Child, so she challenged herself to cook her way through Julia Child’s cookbook. She decided to cook 500+ recipes over the course of 365 days and blog everyday about the process. I really enjoyed it, Randy on the other hand…. I had to keep checking to see if his eyes were open. Haha! Anyway, the girl Julie talks about this “Beef Bourguignon” recipe of Julia Child’s, that is supposed to be really delicious. One of these days when I don’t have a lot going on, I’m going to cook this and try it out.
Since I had so much fun photographing the food last week from Mother’s, I thought it would be fun to cook and post pictures and recipes every now and then of some of my favorite eats. Here’s the beef bourguignon recipe in case anyone wants to give it a world! I haven’t been able to get the thought of cooking this out of my head since we saw the movie. I’ll let you know how it turns out when I attempt to make it, I think its like a 5 hour process to cook!
Beef Bourguignon
Ingredients:
- 1 6-ounce chunk of bacon
- 1 9- to 10-inch fireproof casserole 3 inches deep
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or cooking oil
- 1 slotted spoon
- 3 pounds lean stewing beef cut into 2-inch cubes
- 1 sliced carrot
- 1 sliced onion
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3 cups of a full-bodied young red wine such as one of those suggested for serving or a Chianti
- 2-3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 cloves mashed garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- a crumbled bay leaf
- the blanched bacon rind
- 18-24 small white onions (brown-braised in stock)
- 1 pound quartered fresh mushrooms sauteed in butter
- parsley sprigs
Cooking Insturctions:
Remove rind 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.
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 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 fat.
Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the 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 preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven 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. 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.
While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.
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 off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 21/2 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 the simmer, cover and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.