Channeling Julia

Despite the fact that I've owned Mastering the Art of French Cooking for quite a few years, I had never attempted any of its hundreds of recipes. I've read it cover to cover so I'm not sure why it took me so long to prepare one of Julia's dishes.  I like Julia.  I envy the life she led and I admire her strength and dedication in pursuing a successful culinary career midway through life.

Dave's parents were in town over the weekend and I happily volunteered to cook one night.  On the morning of our dinner, still undecided on a menu, I suddenly had a thought:  Why not prepare Julia Child's famous boeuf bourguignon?  It was a cool day and a warm beef stew sounded delicious.  Other than a few minor adjustments, I stayed true to Julia's vision.  There are a lot of painstaking steps to this recipe, with perfectly written explanations for each.  This dish is quintessentially French, made with a bottle of delicious red wine, and full of flavor.  For sides, I prepared a simple green salad and a batch of rustic, skin-on mashed potatoes. Despite the long process, I enjoyed every minute of preparing this special dish.  It felt like Julia was there with me, teaching me each step along the way.

Boeuf Bourguignon
Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck
Serves 6-8

4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
6 strips of thickly cut bacon, coarsely chopped
3 lb chuck pot roast cut into 2 inch cubes
1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp flour
3 cups full-bodied, dry red wine
2-3 cups beef stock
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 bay leaf, crumbled
3 1/2 Tbsp butter
1 bag frozen pearl onions, thawed
1 lb chopped crimini mushrooms
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 small shallot, finely diced
handful of fresh parsley, chopped
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the stew:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a large dutch oven with lid (or other deep pot with lid) heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Saute bacon in the oil until slightly brown, 3-4 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate. Turn off heat and set pot aside with the bacon fat remaining in the pot.

Dry the chunks of beef in paper towels to ensure browning in the pot. Return pot to medium-high heat. When the fat is almost smoking begin adding chunks of beef, being careful not to overcrowd the pot. Brown the beef on all sides and then add it to the plate with the bacon.

Add the chopped carrot and onion to the pot. Saute the vegetables until browned. If there is still quite a bit of fat in the pot which has not been absorbed by the vegetables, drain that fat.

Turn off the heat and return beef and bacon to the pot with the vegetables. Season with 1 tsp of salt and a 1/2 tsp pepper. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and toss lightly to incorporate the flour. Uncovered, set the pot in the oven for 4 minutes. Remove pot, toss the mixture again, and return to the oven for 4 minutes more. Remove pot and decrease the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Add the red wine to the pot and stir into the mixture. Next, pour in enough beef stock so that the beef is almost, but not quite, covered with liquid. Add in the tomato paste, garlic, thyme and bay leaf. Stir to evenly incorporate those ingredients. Uncovered, bring the mixture to a simmer on the stove.  Once at a simmer, cover the pot and allow it to cook in the oven for 2 1/2 - 3 hours or until a fork pierces the meat easily.

While the stew is cooking prepare the onions and mushrooms (see below).

When the stew is finished cooking, pour the mixture through a large sieve so that the liquid collects into a large saucepan. Return solid meat and vegetables to the original dutch oven. Mix the prepared onions and mushrooms into the meat and vegetables.  Set aside.

Over medium heat, bring the liquid to a simmer. Begin to skim the fat off the surface of the liquid, using a spoon.  (You could also use a fat-separator to dispose of the fat).  Continue to allow the sauce to simmer until it thickens slightly. Taste sauce for seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary.

For immediate serving:

Pour liquid back over the meat and vegetables and over medium heat, bring to a simmer.  Allow stew to simmer for 2-3 minutes or until warmed through. Sprinkle with a generous handful of chopped parsley and transfer to a serving platter for serving, or serve right from it's pot.

For later serving:

Pour liquid back over the meat and vegetables and allow mixture to cool. When the stew is cooled, cover and refrigerate.  Remove pot 20 minutes before serving and bring pot to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally. This stew can be prepared a day in advance and only gets better as it sits in the refrigerator.

For the onions:

Gently roll thawed onions in a kitchen towel until they are completely dry. In a large oven-proof saute pan heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the fat in the pan begins to bubble, add the onions and cook for 10 minutes, rolling the onions occasionally to ensure even browning.  Turn off the heat and add the 1/2 cup of white wine.  Transfer the saute pan to the oven with the stew. Bake the onions for 45 minutes.  Once the onions are finished, transfer them to a plate and set aside.

For the mushrooms:

In a large saute pan heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil over high heat. Once the fat is hot and the butter begins to brown, add just enough mushrooms so that they do not overcrowd the pan.  (If there are too many mushrooms in the pan at once, the mushrooms with steam instead of brown). You may have to cook the mushrooms in 3-5 batches depending on the size of your pan. When the mushrooms have browned on both sides remove to a plate and continue with the rest of the mushrooms. Once all of the mushrooms are browned, set them aside.

Like all great recipes, this one begins with bacon.  

Browning vegetables in the bacon and beef fats adds an amazing layer of flavor to this stew.

Be sure to buy two bottles of the same red wine - one to cook with and one to drink with dinner.  Julia recommends a full-bodied French red but I used a California pinot noir (same grape as in French Burgundy) and had fantastic results.  

Simmering stew, ready for the oven.

Be sure to thoroughly dry thawed onions to ensure proper browning.

Sauteing mushrooms.  Julia's tip:  Do not overcrowd the pan or the mushrooms will never brown.

Almost ready to eat.  I prepared an all-French cheese plate complete with creamy Brie, nutty Gruyere, a salty Roquefort, fig preserves and a sinfully rich pork rillette made with Riesling.  Served with some sliced baguette, this spread wetted our appetites while we waited for the stew.

Ready to serve up the warm stew. 

I made some easy skin-on mashed red potatoes.  Flavored with roasted garlic, butter and cream, these were the perfect way to soak up all of the delicious red wine sauce.

A peppery arugula salad tossed with a simple vinaigrette and some freshly chopped tarragon and chives.   

Ready to eat.

This stew was certainly enjoyed by all.  Thanks to Julia.