Modern Beef Burgundy

Serves 6 to 8

If the pearl onions have a papery outer coating, remove it by rinsing them in warm water and gently squeezing individual onions between your fingertips. To save time, salt the meat and let it stand while you prep the remaining ingredients. Serve with mashed potatoes or buttered noodles.

Ingredients

• 1 (4‑pound) boneless beef chuck-eye roast, trimmed and cut into 11/2- to
• 2‑inch pieces, scraps reserved
• Salt and pepper
• 6 ounces salt pork, cut into 1/4‑inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed, halved if medium or quartered if large
• 1 1/2 cups frozen pearl onions, thawed
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 (750‑ml) bottle red Burgundy or Pinot Noir
• 5 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
• 2 onions, chopped coarse
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 2‑inch lengths
• 1 garlic head, cloves separated, unpeeled, and smashed
• 1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
• 10 sprigs fresh parsley, plus 3 tablespoons minced
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

Directions

1. Toss beef and 11/2 teaspoons salt together in bowl and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

2. Adjust oven racks to lower-middle and lowest positions and heat oven to 500 degrees. Place salt pork, 2 tablespoons butter, and beef scraps in large roasting pan. Roast on upper rack until well browned and fat has rendered, 15 to 20 minutes.

3. While salt pork and beef scraps roast, toss cremini mushrooms, pearl onions, sugar, and remaining 1 tablespoon butter together on rimmed baking sheet. Roast on lower rack, stirring occasionally, until moisture released by mushrooms evaporates and vegetables are lightly glazed, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer vegetables to large bowl, cover, and refrigerate.

4. Remove roasting pan from oven and reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Sprinkle flour over rendered fat and whisk until no dry flour remains. Whisk in broth, 2 cups wine, gelatin, tomato paste, and anchovy paste until combined. Add onions, carrots, garlic, porcini mushrooms, parsley sprigs, thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and peppercorns to pan. Arrange beef in single layer on top of vegetables. Add water as needed to come three-quarters up side of beef (beef should not be submerged). Return roasting pan to oven and cook until meat is tender, 3 to 31/2 hours, stirring after 1 1/2 hours and adding water to keep meat at least half-submerged.

5. Using slotted spoon, transfer beef to bowl with cremini mushrooms and pearl onions; cover and set aside. Strain braising liquid through fine-mesh strainer set over large bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Stir in remaining wine and let cooking liquid settle, 10 minutes. Using wide, shallow spoon, skim fat from surface and discard.

6. Transfer liquid to Dutch oven and bring mixture to boil over medium-high heat. Simmer briskly, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened to consistency of heavy cream, 15 to 20 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, stir in beef and mushroom-onion mixture, cover, and cook until just heated through, 5 to 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in minced parsley and serve. (Stew can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

Recipe Details

Timeline

30 minutes to salt beef (hands-off)

20 minutes to roast salt pork and beef scraps (roast mushrooms and onions at

same time)

3 1/2 hours to braise stew (mostly hands-off)

30 minutes to strain liquid and reduce sauce

Essential Tools

Large roasting pan for making stew

Rimmed baking sheet for roasting mushroom and onion garnish

Fine-mesh strainer

Dutch oven for finishing stew

Substitutions & Variations

Blade steak (also known as flat-iron steak) can be used in this recipe. Make sure to trim the line of gristle that runs through the center of each steak as well as all external fat around each steak. While blade steak will yield slightly thinner pieces after trimming, it should still be cut into 1 1/2‑inch pieces. Note that the cooking time might be a bit shorter.

Two minced anchovy fillets can be used in place of the anchovy paste.

A red Burgundy (from France, of course) is the classic choice, but any Pinot Noir (including something from California or Oregon) will work just fine. Do buy something that is good enough to drink on its own, but don’t splurge—nuances in a really expensive wine will be lost in this dish.

Source: America’s Test Kitchen