Beef Bourguignon beeffrenchbraise Equipment Enameled Dutch ovenCutting board and knifeWooden spoonTongsSlotted spoonPlate for resting browned beef Ingredients Dish A * 450 g chuck steak, cut into 3–4cm cubes, patted dry, salted lightly 30 min ahead Dish B * 100 g block bacon, cut into ~1cm lardons Dish C * 1 onion, medium-diced 2 carrots, peeled, cut into 2cm chunks Dish D 4 garlic cloves, smashed and roughly chopped 15 g tomato paste Dish E 20 g flour Dish F * 375 ml red wine Dish G * 250 ml beef broth Dish H 2 bay leaves 2 g dried thyme Dish I * 200 g pearl onions, blanched 60 seconds, ice-bathed, peeled Dish J * 200 g mushrooms, quartered if large Dish K 20 g butter Dish L * 300 g potatoes, peeled, cut into 3cm chunks Dish M 5 g salt 2 g black pepper * larger than my standard 90ml prep dish Steps Heat the Dutch oven over medium-high. Add the lardons and render until crisp and the fat has pooled, about 6 minutes. Lift the lardons out with a slotted spoon to a plate, leaving the fat behind. Working in batches that don't crowd the pot, brown the beef cubes hard on all sides in the bacon fat — 3 minutes per side, deeply caramelized. Move browned beef to the lardon plate. Drop the heat to medium. Add the onion and carrots and cook 6–8 minutes until the onion is translucent and starting to color. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste; cook 1 minute until the paste darkens. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir 2 minutes — this thickens the braise and removes the raw flour taste. Pour in the red wine, scraping the fond off the bottom of the pot. Let it simmer hard for 3 minutes to cook off the alcohol's harshness. Return the beef and lardons to the pot, add the broth, bay leaves, and thyme, and salt lightly. Bring to a bare simmer, lid on, and braise on low for 2 hours — keep it just barely bubbling. The pot should not be boiling. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, sauté the mushrooms in butter until deeply browned. Set aside until the last 30 minutes. After 2 hours, add the pearl onions, potatoes, and sautéed mushrooms. Continue at a bare simmer 30–40 minutes more, until the potatoes are tender and the meat falls apart at a fork press. Pull out the bay leaves. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper. Rest off heat 10 minutes before serving — the sauce thickens further as it sits.