Tender Beef Bourguignon with Frey Wine – A Simple, Classic Dinner – You don’t have to go to a French restaurant to have amazing food. You can make it right at home! I’ve been making variations of this recipe since I was about 20 years old. What I’ve come up with is a user-friendly version that keeps things simple. Serve this with a good quality French Bordeaux or a hearty California Cabernet.
Cut up meat into large cubes, 1 1/2 to 2 inches in size. Trim any fat or silverskin. Cut the vegetables roughly into 2 inch pieces. Pat meat dry with a paper towel. Cut the bacon crosswise into thin strips about 1/8 inch wide. Heat a large pot to medium. Add the bacon and turn down to medium low to render the fat until bacon lardons are crispy. Remove to a plate with a paper towel on it. Season the meat with salt and pepper and dust with the flour, then sear in the pot until browned on all sides. You may have to do this in batches. (Don’t overcrowd the pot or they won’t brown properly.) Add the vegetables back to the pot and all of the meat. Add all of the wine and enough stock to cover the contents of the pot. Add bay leaf and thyme. Bring up to a simmer and cook for 2 – 2 1/2 hours until meat is tender. Remove the meat and cover to keep warm, reserve the liquid and discard the vegetables from the pot. Reduce the liquid until it is the consistency of a sauce. Saute the mushrooms and onions whole in butter with a little salt and pepper until they are browned in a separate saute pan. Serve the meat with the mushrooms and onions and add the sauce on top over boiled potatoes or noodles, if desired. Use the bacon lardons as a garnish
