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bouef bourguignon over egg noodles in a bowl with a fork
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4.84 from 12 votes

Boeuf Bourguignon (French Beef Stew)

Here's how to make our savory, comforting, classic French beef stew (Boeuf Bourguignon) on the stovetop, in the Instant Pot or other pressure cooker, or in the slow cooker. Includes gluten-free and dairy-free versions.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time3 hours
Course: Stews
Cuisine: French
Keyword: beef bourguignon, boef bourguignon instant pot, boeuf bourguignon, french beef stew
Servings: 8
Author: Carolyn Gratzer Cope

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds (1360 grams) beef chuck or other stew meat, cut into 2-inch chunks
  • 6 ounces (170 grams) thick-cut bacon, chopped
  • 2 medium onions diced
  • 3 medium carrots diced
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams) tomato paste
  • 1 bottle (750 ml) dry red wine, such as Burgundy or Pinot Noir (see note 2)
  • 4 cups (950 ml) reduced-sodium beef stock (see note 2)
  • 2 large sprigs thyme
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon (14 ml) olive oil
  • 1 pound (454 grams) cremini (baby bella) mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 12- ounce 340-gram bag frozen pearl onions, defrosted
  • 2 tablespoons (28 grams) butter, at room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons (15 grams) flour
  • ½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

Stovetop to Oven Instructions

  • Dry the beef cubes well with paper towels.
  • Set a large Dutch oven or other heavy, oven-proof lidded pot over medium-high heat.
  • Add chopped bacon and cook, stirring from time to time, until browned. Remove bacon from pot, leaving fat in pot.
  • In batches to avoid crowding, add beef cubes and brown well on all sides. Remove beef from pot and pour off (or spoon out) all but 1 tablespoon of fat.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F with a rack in the lower third.
  • Add onions and carrots to pot. Cook, stirring from time to time, until becoming tender and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
  • Add garlic and cook, stirring, one minute more. Stir in tomato paste.
  • Add beef and bacon back to pot. Pour in wine and beef broth. Stir in thyme, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and pepper.
  • Cover pot with lid and place in oven. Cook for about two hours, until meat is very tender.
  • While stew cooks, set a frying pan over medium-high heat and pour in olive oil. When hot, add mushrooms and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned.
  • When meat is very tender, carefully place pot on stovetop over medium heat. Add mushrooms and pearl onions.
  • In a small bowl, mash together the butter and flour with a fork to form a paste. Stir paste into stew.
  • Simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
  • Remove thyme stems and bay leaves and stir in parsley just before serving.

Instant Pot Instructions

  • The Instant Pot does an okay job sautéing and browning. You can choose to use it for the bacon, beef, carrot, onion, and garlic if you like. I prefer to use a large, heavy frying pan on the stovetop.
  • Dry the beef cubes well with paper towels.
  • Using the IP sauté function (on high if your model has an option) or in a large frying pan on the stovetop, cook chopped bacon, stirring from time to time, until browned. Remove bacon from pot, leaving fat in pot.
  • In batches to avoid crowding, add beef cubes and brown well on all sides. Remove beef from pot and pour off (or spoon out) all but 1 tablespoon of fat.
  • Add onions and carrots to pot. Cook, stirring from time to time, until becoming tender and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
  • Add garlic and cook, stirring, one minute more. Stir in tomato paste.
  • Pour in 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) wine and 2 cups (475 ml) beef broth and scrape up browned bits from bottom of pot. Stir in thyme, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and pepper.
  • Add beef and bacon back to pot. (Or, if using a skillet, pour all contents into Instant Pot.)
  • Position lid seal vent. Cook on manual, high pressure, for 20 minutes. Let pressure release naturally.
  • While stew cooks, set frying pan over medium-high heat and pour in olive oil. When hot, add mushrooms and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned.
  • When pressure has released, carefully open Instant Pot and set to sauté. Stir in mushrooms and defrosted pearl onions.
  • In a small bowl, mash together the butter and flour with a fork to form a paste. Stir paste into stew.
  • Simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Remove thyme stems and bay leaves and stir in parsley just before serving.

Slow Cooker Instructions

  • Dry the beef cubes well with paper towels.
  • Set a large frying pan over medium-high heat on the stovetop.
  • Add chopped bacon and cook, stirring from time to time, until browned. Remove bacon from pot, leaving fat in pot.
  • In batches to avoid crowding, add beef cubes and brown well on all sides. Remove beef from pot and pour off (or spoon out) all but 1 tablespoon of fat.
  • Add onions and carrots to pot. Cook, stirring from time to time, until becoming tender and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
  • Add garlic and cook, stirring, one minute more. Stir in tomato paste.
  • Pour in 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) wine and 2 cups (475 ml) beef broth. Stir in thyme, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and pepper.
  • Add beef and bacon to slow cooker. Pour in contents of skillet.
  • Cook on high for 5 to 7 hours or on low for 8 to 10 hours, until meat is very tender.
  • 30 minutes before serving time: In a small bowl, mash together the butter and flour with a fork to form a paste. Stir paste into stew, along with defrosted pearl onions. Raise slow cooker heat to high if not already using. Cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes to thicken.
  • Meanwhile, set frying pan over medium-high heat and pour in olive oil. When hot, add mushrooms and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned. Stir into stew.
  • Remove thyme stems and bay leaves and stir in parsley just before serving.

Notes

  1. I like to use beef chuck when making stew. It's affordable and has lots of flavor, fat, and connective tissue, which makes it ideal for long, slow cooking. You can learn more about chuck and some other good stew meat choices here if you like.
  2. IMPORTANT: You'll need a whole bottle of red wine and 4 cups of beef broth to make this recipe via the stovetop/oven method. You will only need half a bottle of wine and 2 cups of beef broth for the Instant Pot or slow cooker, since those cooking methods cause much less evaporation.
  3. Reds from the Burgundy (Bourgogne) region of France tend to have similar characteristics to the pinot noirs I drink more regularly, so I usually reach for one of those.
  4. For a dairy-free version of this dish, you have two options. Either substitute a plant-based butter or skim two tablespoons of the fat from the stew when it comes out of the oven and mix that with the flour.
  5. For a gluten-free version of this dish, substitute your favorite 1:1 GF baking blend or all-purpose GF blend, whichever you have on hand.
  6. The pearl onions are optional. If you can't find frozen ones, I would just leave them out. Fresh ones must be blanched, peeled, and boiled in advance of adding to the stew.
  7. This is a great recipe to make in advance. Like most stews, the flavors only commune and improve over time. You can make French beef stew earlier in the day, let it sit, covered, on the stovetop, and reheat right in the pot before serving. To make further in advance, cool completely and then transfer to an airtight container to refrigerate for up to a week or freeze for up to a year. When chilled, a layer of fat will rise to the top. You can remove it before reheating or stir it back as it heats.

Nutrition

Calories: 560kcal | Carbohydrates: 13.2g | Protein: 61.1g | Fat: 29.8g | Fiber: 2.3g

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