Possibly my absolute favorite Julia Child recipe to date, beef bourguignon. I’ve made her traditional dish, with every single step timed stamped perfectly and read every single word of the recipe. It s a time sucker, but worth every single sweat bead.
Then most recently, the angels must have been whispering into my husbands ear. For the past 12 years, he still brings me sweet little gifts. Now mushy I am not, so don’t bring me heart box full of crappy chocolate or the staged red roses. Joey knows me way better than that, and instead brought me home a gorgeous copy of Bon Appetit and Saveur magazines.
The first flip through, I hard core fell in love with this gorgeous recipe. Beef bourguinon pot pie, made easier with a simple pull over of puff pastry. The bourguignon itself does take time, if you decide to do Julia’s version. However I took some inspiration from the magazine and told myself, it’s OK not to make everything from scratch and decided to keep the filling as simple as I could.
May I repeat…as simple as I COULD. Meaning, it’s still a time sucker, but not nearly as long winded as in her book, including cooking with 3 different pans and washing out pots, etc. No, we are using 1 pot for the stew, 1 pan for some sauteing and your favorite pot pie dishes. Or what the heck, you could even slap the whole puff pastry sheet over your dutch oven if you REALLY want to keep it easy. Either way, throwing buttery flaky puff pastry over a wine loaded beef stew will probably be the most rewarding thing you put in your mouth.
And might I add that this would make a lovely (ahem) Valentines dinner-in? Don’t say I never help you out.
- 8 oz mushrooms mixture of button, cremini and shitake or any you prefer, cut in half or quartered if large
- 6 oz pearl onions frozen and defrosted, usually half of a bag
- 2 Tb butter
- Olive oil for drizzling
- 1 sprig of fresh thyme
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1/4 cup red wine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 3 strips of bacon chopped
- 2 lbs of beef chuck cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1/2 cup flour
- 2 large carrots peeled and sliced on a diagonal
- 1 leek sliced in half moon slices
- 1 shallot chopped
- 1 Tb tomato paste
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary stems removed and chopped finely
- 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme stems removed and chopped finely
- 3 cups beef stock separated
- 3 cup red wine I used Chianti
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oil for drizzling
- 2 sheets of puff pastry defrosted
- 1 egg + water for eggwash
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Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
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First saute the mushrooms and onions. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter and olive oil together and then add mushrooms and pearl onions, stirring so everything is coated with the butter.
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Next, add the herbs (leaving whole is fine), red wine and season with salt and pepper and cook until onions are just about tender, 10-15 minutes. Once done, set aside.
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In a large pot or dutch oven, drizzle with olive oil and add chopped bacon. Cook until fat has rendered, then remove bacon to a plate and set aside.
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Next, dredge the cubed beef lightly in flour, shaking off any excess and add the beef cubes to the same pot, searing on all sides. You may have to do this in several batches to not overcrowd the pot.
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Once all the beef is seared (it will be under-cooked in the middle), remove to a plate and set aside.
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In the same pot, add the sliced carrot, leeks and shallot and saute for about 2-3 minutes until the leeks and shallot begin to soften. You may have to add a bit more oil if it's too dry.
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Then stir in 1 Tb tomato paste, chopped garlic and chopped herbs and saute for another minute.
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De-glaze by pouring in 1 cup of beef stock and using a wooden spoon to scrape all the bits off the bottom of the pot.
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Add back the bacon and cubed beef to the pot. Pour in 3 cups of red wine and 2-3 cups of beef stock until just barely covering everything. Add in 2 bay leaves and gently stir everything together.
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Cover the dutch oven with a tight fitting lid and bake for 2-21/2 hours, or until the meat is tender.
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While stew is cooking, you can prep the puff pastry.
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On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry to it's a bit thinner, about 1/8th of an inch but not too thin to tear.
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Use your pot pie dishes as a guide to cut circles, leaving about 1 inch overhang.
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Once stew is done, remove from the oven and add the mushrooms and onions and gently stir everything together. Allow to cool slightly.
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Then ladle the stew into preferred baking dishes and cover with puff pastry. Cut a small hole into the crust and brush with egg wash.
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Place pot pies on a baking sheet and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
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Once done, remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Inspired by Bon Appetit and Julia Child's recipe
This looks great!!
Love Julia Child too. 🙂
Marc recently posted..Bob Kramer – Washington
Your pot pies sound wonderful and look like something you would find in a little French bistro.
Thank you so much Karen! They are delicious…but isn’t everything with a layer of puff pastry?? haha