Yes, I know this video recipe has been done a zillion times and since this is my first video recipe I chose a dish that is simple to prepare.  I had no idea what I was doing making this video.  I couldn’t find a pause botton, the segments were too long, and I was totally frustrated.  So have a good laugh with me on this one and I promise the next video recipe will be better.  I should have drank the wine before I started filming…next time.

The important part of this post is the dish.  This is a stove-top version of the classic recipe for beef burgundy which was made popular by in Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Childe and last summer’s box-office hit “Julie and Julia.”   If you haven’t made this dish yet, I encourage you to do so.  It is not as daunting as you may think.  There’s really no measuring…this is basically beef stew with lots of red wine.  See the list of ingredients and simple method following the video.  

Ingredients: (estimated for 4 people)

• 3 strips of bacon, sliced into 1/2-inch wide strips
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• 1 pound of beef surloin or stew meat, 2-inch cubes
• 2 Tbsp flour
• sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 3-4 cups red wine (burgundy, merlot, shiraz, pinot noir or 1/2 burgundy and 1/2 madeira)
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 stock celery, chopped
• baby carrots
• fingerling potatoes
• boiling onions (or 1 onion sliced into 6 or 8 pieces)
• 2 cups beef stock (homemade is best)

Method:

1. Saute bacon over medium high heat until fat is rendered.
2. Add mushrooms and sweat them.  Continue saute until mushroom juices disipate.
3. Add beef cubes and saute for 5 minutes or until no longer pink.  Add flour and continue to cook until meat is lightly browned.
4. Add wine, tomato paste, thyme, bay leaf, celery, carrots, potatoes and onions.  Stir and lower heat to medium.  Cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until some of the liquid has evaporated and thickened to a silky sheen.
5. Add beef stock, cover, open steam vents, and lower heat to a lively simmer.  Cook 1 hour or until meat is fork tender.
6. Serve over egg noodles or rice.  Garnish with fresh parsley.