I had my first encounter with Beef Bourguignon around the time I started this blog back in 2010. I had just watched Julie & Julia, and so like every other food blogger newbie, I attempted Julia Child’s recipe that Julie Van Rosendaal adapted for the slowcooker (read about that here). It was good, but I’ve learned a lot over the years, and realized that there are a lot of extra steps and things I just don’t like about that recipe (i.e. pearl onions).

A few years ago I found a much more streamlined version of basically the same thing on one of my favourite blogs, Family Bites. The recipe as written is actually for Beef Stroganoff, but when I made it the first time, I stopped to taste test it before stirring in the sour cream to finish it off, and fell in love. It was the Beef Bourguignon of my dreams, and I found it way easier to make than the first recipe I tried.

Now it’s become an annual tradition for awards season, and I’m always happy to make it again. Jan’s recipe is perfect as is, and I follow her note to really take the time to brown the beef in my dutch oven to start things off. This is the key to building a solid foundation of flavour. Once that’s done, you add in some onions and mushrooms to sauté, then stir in beef stock, red wine, dijon mustard, and some salt and pepper. That’s it! Cover and tuck into the oven on low for a few hours (or transfer to the slowcooker and let it go for 8 hours), and the most delicious stew will emerge.

My friends request this over mashed potatoes, but I’ve also eaten leftovers over egg noodles or rice, and both are delicious options. I always round it out with a big green salad, because I like having something fresh to offset the richness of the stew and starches.

This is the perfect meal to you sustain you through three hours of celebrity nonsense, which we love.

Beef Bourguignon

Source: adapted a little bit from Family Bites

Yield: Serves about 4-5

Ingredients

• 2 lbs stewing beef
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus more as needed
• 1 tbsp butter, plus more as needed
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 cup red wine
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 lb cremini mushrooms, cut into thick slices, or quartered

Directions

1. Add the beef to a large bowl, and toss with the flour, salt and pepper until the beef pieces are evenly coated (this helps form a nice golden brown crust once you start searing the beef).
2. In a dutch oven over medium heat, add the olive oil and butter, and once the butter is melted, add enough beef pieces to cover the bottom of the pot, but don’t crowd it. Let the pieces brown for about 2-3 minutes, then flip over and repeat on the other side. When the beef is nicely golden, remove to a plate. Repeat with remaining beef. I usually do this in three batches, and add a little more olive oil and/or butter to the pan in between.
3. When all the beef is done, add the onion to the pot and cook for 5 minutes or so, and stir to scrape up all the little brown bits on the bottom of the pan (brown bits = mega flavour). Add the beef broth, red wine and dijon to the pot and stir to combine, then add the mushrooms and stir again, and finally add the beef back to the pot and stir a final time.
4. Now you can do two things – either cover with a lid and put into a 300º oven for 3 hours OR transfer everything to a slowbooker, and cook on low for 8 hours. I’ve done both and the outcome is exactly the same.
5. Serve over your favourite starchy carb!