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Tender, fall apart chunks of beef simmered slowly in a rich red wine gravy make this Beef Bourguignon the kind of dinner that feels a little bit fancy but completely comforting at the same time. Made famous by Julia Child, this classic French stew has earned its place in kitchens around the world. A proper Julia Child beef bourguignon is all about patience, building flavour in layers, and letting good ingredients do their thing. It is the sort of meal you cook with a glass of wine in hand, taking your time because every step truly matters.
This beef bourguignon recipe stays true to those traditional roots while giving you flexibility. Whether you make it in the oven, on the stovetop, in your slow cooker, or turn it into an easy beef bourguignon in the pressure cooker, the result is the same. Tender beef, a glossy wine sauce, and a dish that tastes like it has been simmering in a French countryside kitchen all day.
Adapting this Beef Bourguignon from Julia’s best seller, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, this dish raises a simple beef stew to an art form and is not too difficult to make at all. You don’t need to be an experienced cook to try this in your kitchen at home.
Even though it’s been remade all over the world countless times by families over the decades, it’s an extremely forgiving recipe. We cut out a few steps from Julia’s original to make it a little easier and maybe a little less intimidating. Still, I didn’t want to mess with something so perfect.
Julia Child = Genius.
How do you make a beef bourguignon?
I don’t know about you but when reading the original recipe from Julia’s book, I immediately became as nervous as Amy Adams’ Julie in the movie Julie and Julia. SO MANY STEPS. So I poured myself a wine and began my mission to follow AT LEAST one recipe in my life as best as I could.
The results were unbelievable. I can honestly say I have never enjoyed a stew as much as I did when it was done.
Trying it again and skipping only a couple of steps to attempt to cut down on some the work and washing extra pots; adding a little more of this and that, I have to say the results were just about the same but with a little added flavour.
What did we do differently?
Julia’s first step is to simmer bacon rind and fat in water for 10 minutes, remove then proceed to fry lightly in oil. We skipped this and just went straight to frying until crisp and browned.
When beef and veggies are in, Julia suggests to set the casserole in the oven for 4 minutes, then toss the meat and return to the oven for 4 minutes more. We skipped this also and opted to continue cooking over stove top. This didn’t make a difference.
I added a couple extra cloves of garlic feeling we missed that particular flavour and added more herbs into the stew.
Also, Julia prepares her pearl sized onions seperate from the Beef Bourguignon itself, adding them in near the end of cooking. My family completely skipped over the onions in their bowls, eating everything else and leaving them behind. So, the second time around, I added them in with all of the ingredients, saving a pot and stove top cooking time. The results were better for us. We saved the onions!
Lastly, Julia asks us to wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it at the end of the recipe. This I couldn’t bring myself to do, wanting to keep every single lick of flavour in that pot.
I was left craving this the next day, so we made it again and again. No regrets.
What meat is best for beef bourguignon?
We tried this with a few cuts of beef: brisket, chuck steak and stewing beef (yes, the third time I made it was in our Instant Pot/Multi Cooker). Brisket yielded our favourite result.
The meat fell apart so beautifully and tasted better than the others with a juicy outcome. Having said the though, you can use whichever stewing beef you can find or have on hand.
Tips to an incredible Beef Bourguignon
Taste test: We taste tested it immediately after cooking and found that the wine was an extremely strong flavour in the gravy. PLEASE don’t worry or try to adjust it straight away! Let it rest for 15 minutes and the flavours begin to settle into each other. The wine flavour mellowed out and we LOVED it. If you’re serving it the next day, the flavours are even better.
Don’t skip the buttery garlic mushrooms. When I tried adding them in from the start, they had shrivelled up into nothingness by the end. They really are incredible added in fresh from the pan, plump and buttery. I couldn’t resist adding some garlic to them along with some salt and pepper. It added a lot more flavour to the end result.
Simmer the gravy.Please don’t skip this step. After straining the liquid, simmer it for a minute or two and watch the magic of a deliciously rich and glossy gravy thicken before your eyes. If the sauce is too thick, add a few tablespoons of stock at a time to thin it out. However, if the sauce is too thin, boil it over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until reduced to the right consistency.
You should be left with about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Which red wine is best for beef bourguignon?
Julia recommends a good quality burgundy for her Beef Bourguignon recipe. We used a $20 bottle of Pinot Noir as we love cooking with that particular wine. It doesn’t need to be expensive, but try to get a good quality brand.
Worried about the amount of wine? Reduce it to 2 cups and up the stock to 3 cups (for oven and stove top methods only). If you don’t want to use wine, you can leave it out all together and use all beef stock. However, I cannot guarantee the flavour. The wine makes this incredible.
What do you serve with beef bourguignon?
Definitely Mashed potatoes! You can also serve it with plain rice or noodles. There is so much flavour in this, you need a fairly plain side to go with it.
Tender fall apart chunks of beef simmered in a rich red wine gravy makes Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon an incredible family dinner. Slow cooker, Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker, stove top and the traditional oven method included! Easy to make – every step is worth it.
Ingredients
1tablespoonsextra-virgin olive oil
6ouncesbaconroughly chopped
3poundsbeef briskettrimmed of fat, chuck steak or stewing beef cut into 2-inch chunks
1carrotlarge, sliced 1/2-inch thick
1white onionlarge, diced
6clovesgarlicminced (divided)
1pinchcoarse salt
1pinchground pepper
2tablespoonsflour
12pearl onionssmall, optional
3cupsred winelike Merlot, Pinot Noir, or a Chianti – for a milder sauce, use only 2 cups of wine
2-3cupsbeef stock(if using 2 cups of wine, use 3 cups beef stock)
2tablespoonstomato paste
1beef bouillon cubecrushed
1teaspoonfresh thymefinely chopped
2tablespoonsfresh parsleyfinely chopped, divided
2bay leaves
1poundwhite mushroomsfresh, small or brown mushrooms ,quartered
2tablespoonsbutter
Instructions
TRADITIONAL OVEN METHOD:
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
Heat the oil in a large dutch oven or heavy based pot. Sauté the bacon over medium heat for about 3 minutes, until crisp and browned. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large dish and set aside.
Pat dry beef with paper towel; sear in batches in the hot oil/bacon fat until browned on all sides. Remove to the dish with the bacon.
In the remaining oil/bacon fat, sauté the carrots and diced onions until softened, (about 3 minutes), then add 4 cloves minced garlic and cook for 1 minute. Drain excess fat (leave about 1 tablespoon in the pan) and return the bacon and beef back into the pot; season with 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper. Sprinkle with flour, toss well and cook for 4-5 minutes to brown.
Add the pearl onions, wine and enough stock so that the meat is barely covered. Then add the tomato paste, bullion and herbs. Bring to a simmer on the stove.
Cover, transfer to lower part of the oven and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, or until the meat is fall apart tender (adjust the heat so that the liquid simmers very slowly).
In the last 5 minutes of cooking time, prepare your mushrooms:Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet/pan over heat. When the foam subsides, add the remaining 2 cloves garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds), then add in the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, while shaking the pan occasionally to coat with the butter. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Once they are browned, set aside.
Place a colander over a large pot (I do this in my clean kitchen sink). Remove the casserole from the oven and carefully empty its contents into the colander (you want to collect the sauce only). Discard the herbs
Return the beef mixture back into the dutch oven or pot. Add the mushrooms over the meat.
Remove any fat off the sauce( if any) and simmer for a minute or two, skimming off any additional fat which rises to the surface.
You should be left with about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat the back of a spoon lightly. If the sauce is too thick, add a few tablespoons of stock. If the sauce is too thin, boil it over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until reduced to the right consistency.
Taste for seasoning and adjust salt and pepper, if desired. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables.
If you are serving immediately, simmer the beef bourguignon for 2 to 3 minutes to heat through. Garnish with parsley and serve with mashed potatoes, rice or noodles.
To serve the following day, allow the casserole to cool completely, cover and refrigerate.The day of serving, remove from refrigerator for at least an hour before reheating. Place over medium-low heat and let simmer gently for about 10 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.
Notes
STOVE TOP BEEF BOURGUIGNON:
In a large dutch oven or heavy based pot, sauté the bacon over medium heat in 1 tablespoon of oil for about 3 minutes, until crisp and browned. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large dish and set aside.
Pat dry beef with paper towel; sear in batches in the hot oil/bacon fat until browned on all sides. Remove to the dish with the bacon.
In the remaining oil/bacon fat, sauté the carrots and diced onions until softened, (about 3 minutes), then add 4 cloves minced garlic and cook for 1 minute. Drain excess fat and return the bacon and beef back into the pot; season with 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper. Sprinkle with flour, toss well and cook for 4-5 minutes to brown.
Add the pearl onions, wine and enough stock so that the meat is barely covered. Then add the tomato paste, bullion and herbs. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the meat is falling apart.
In the last 5 minutes of cooking time, prepare your mushrooms: Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet/pan over heat. When the foam subsides, add the remaining 2 cloves garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds), then add in the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, while shaking the pan occasionally to coat with the butter. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
Add browned mushrooms to the pot, let simmer for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, to combine.
Garnish with parsley and serve with mashed potatoes, rice or noodles.
INSTANT POT BEEF BOURGUIGNON / PRESSURE COOKER:
Set Instant Pot or Cooker to SEAR function (or use a pan on the stove over medium heat of you wish). Sauté the bacon in 1 tablespoon of oil until crisp and browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Pat dry beef with paper towel; sear in batches until browned on all sides in the oil/bacon fat.
Return bacon to the pot. Season with 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper. Sprinkle with flour, toss well and cook on SEAR for a further 4-5 minutes to brown.
Add in the onions, pearl onions, carrots, wine, 2 cups of stock, tomato paste, 4 cloves minced garlic, bullion and herbs. Stir well, cover and lock the lid into place. Press Keep Warm/Cancel to stop the Sauté function, then set to MANUAL mode. Choose HIGH PRESSURE for 30 minutes cook time.
After cooking, allow the pressure to release naturally for 8-10 minutes. Open the valve and allow and remaining steam to escape (for Instant Pot, turn the valve from sealing to venting to release the pressure).
While steam is releasing, prepare your buttered mushrooms (OPTIONAL — or add them straight in without cooking in butter if desired): Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet/pan over medium heat. Add the remaining 2 cloves garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds), then add in the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, while shaking the pan occasionally to coat with the butter. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Set aside.
Change the Instant Pot or cooker setting back to the SEAR setting (or SAUTE) stir well and allow the sauce to thicken uncovered, for a further 5-10 minutes.
Add the buttered mushrooms, garnish with parsley and serve with mashed potatoes, rice or noodles.
SLOW COOKER BEEF BOURGUIGNON:
In a large pan or skillet, sauté the bacon over medium heat in 1 tablespoon of oil for about 3 minutes, until crisp and browned. Transfer to 6 quart (litre) slow cooker bowl.
Pat dry beef with paper towel; sear in batches until browned on all sides in the oil/bacon fat. Transfer to slow cooker bowl with the bacon, and add in the onions (both types) and carrots. Season with 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper, tossing well to combine.
Pour the red wine into the pan or skillet and allow to simmer for 4-5 minutes, then whisk in the flour until free from lumps. Allow to reduce and thicken slightly, then pour it into the slow cooker along with 2 cups of stock, tomato paste, garlic, bullion and herbs.
Mix well to combine all of the ingredients. Cook on high heat setting for 6 hours or low for 8 hours, or until beef is falling apart and tender.
In the last 5 minutes of cooking time, prepare your mushrooms: Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet/pan over medium heat. Add the remaining 2 cloves garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds), then add in the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, while shaking the pan occasionally to coat with the butter. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Add to the Beef Bourguignon, mixing them through the sauce before serving.
Garnish with fresh parley and serve with mashed potatoes, rice or noodles.
ORIGINALLY POSTED FEBRUARY 18, 2018. POST UPDATED WITH VIDEO.
Hey Good Food Lovers! It’s nice to see you! My name is Karina. Welcome to Cafe Delites, my beloved space for the last 10 years where my passion for food has flourished and connected millions!
I just got an Insta Pot for Mother’s Day and have been looking for a beef stew recipe when I stumbled upon this!! It came out fantastic, the stewing beef was soooo tender!! I pretty much followed the recipe as written. I only used 2 cups of red wine *(figured I’d rather drink it and use the broth, lol) and added more broth. I will add more carrots next time and serve over potatoes, used egg noodles this time. Thank you, it was lovely to imagine me cooking like Julia Child….albeit with an InstaPot….LOL!!
Yes add another carrot. Do separate to complete gravy, it worked correctly. Used the pearl onions even though I didn’t think I’d like them, I did! I used 3 cups of wine, it was perfect. I also had the correct amount for gravy.
I used my cast iron and old club ware in oven.
I did put my bay leaves in my tea ball to keep it separate but still adding flavor to dish. I used regular button mushrooms. Very good recipe! And accurate! Trust it!
It’s not cheap, cost me $16 for just the meat! But it was rich in flavor as well!
Sad I can’t post pics🥲
I have been making Julia Child’s Boeuf Burguignon for years and years. I use the version the French Chef Cookbook by Julia Child – The book contains recipes demonstrated on the TV series and it’s the first Julia Child Cookbook I ever bought. I will say the recipe changes from book to book. This one has no requirement for carrots or chopped onion. I have made it exactly as written and also made some changes similar to the ones you use. I, too, just chop and saute’ the bacon instead of boiling to remove the salt from salt pork. I also use frozen onions. I have found them at Trader Joe’s – they are the small white 1″ onions. I love your idea of adding them in sooner than the recipe directs I’m making this tonight for a large family dinner tomorrow. I found small onions – pearl size – frozen and plan to use them but if I put them in too early they will turn to mush so I have to wait. The store where I got them had 1# frozen pearl onions and they are tiny! I did adjust the herbs, doubled the recipe for a lot of people. I only had Merlot and not enough for 6 cups for the doubled recipe so I used the whole bottle of wine and a quart of beef broth. It’s cooking and smells wonderful. I plan to serve it over noodles – I usually serve it this way and add in a tossed salad and garlic bread. I love your recopes and thought I’d check out how you do it. I like your changes but I doubt I will strain out the sauce – I have never done that and it’s always worked out perfectly. I noticed that many said the cooking liquid reduced substantially and I’m wondering fi they forgot to cover the pot while cooking? I always have a lot of gravy in this when I’m done. Thank you again for your terrific recipes.
I chose the instant pot version and LOVED it. It IS BETTER the next day. Mine was still rather “loose” so I did add some corn starch and cooked to thicken. Beef was SUPER tender and I did add the mushrooms at the end so they did not shrivel up. Most of the pearl onions were gone but the flavor was there! Served over egg noodles
I’ve always wanted to make Julia Child’s famous recipe! This recipe was easy to follow and it was a huge hit! I followed the oven method and cooked for about 2.5 hours. Both stores I checked didn’t have brisket so I went with chuck stew meat (already cut). Others mentioned concerns with using this meat before trying it, but rest assured, it was fall apart tender and delicious! As others mentioned, I agree there is no need to strain the sauce and add it back to the pot, just remove the bay leaves after putting it back on the stove top to simmer/thickens. I had no issues with losing liquid. Just be sure you are using an actual stock pot that is also meant for the oven as you need a tight seal when cooking that long, otherwise too much will evaporate. I added an extra cup of broth so we had extra and added a lot more carrots (x4) and it still could’ve used more.
THIS is the recipe you make when you want complete comfort food. Make the recipe as is, don’t substitute anything. The depth of flavor is incredible and the ingredients are there to create those layers. You will come away wondering how you could make a dish as wonderful as this. It is THAT GOOD. My husband took one bite and asked when I would make it again because it was such a gratifying meal. The kids loved it too. Win-win! 💗
I made this tonight and let me tell you, I AM SOOOO IMPRESSED! Everything about this dish wash perfect and it looked exactly like your pictures. The beef was soft and the sauce had such a beautiful flavour – no taste of alcohol! 10/10 would recommend!
This recipe was solidly outstanding! I was a little intimidated by the long ingredient list and lots of steps to follow, but after the 1st bottle of wine everything was so much easier!! Thank you so much for sharing and for adding the alternatives, this was so very helpful!
I made the slow cooker version, followed everything pretty exactly except I was too lazy to pat the beef dry (maybe the way ours was packaged didn’t really need it?). Pros: it tastes amazing. We are two big eaters, and this was enough for 3 nights of dinners, so 6 portions easily. It is very filling. Night 1, we had it with crusty baguette, dipping the baguette in to soak up the sauce. Night 2, we had over mashed potatoes. Tonight we will try over either rice or pasta. I think the second night was even better as the flavors really settled. I used 2 1/2 cups of red cooking wine and 2 1/2 cups of liquid where you dissolve the beef bouillon in the boiling water (I bought beef broth by mistake instead of stock so I wasn’t sure it would taste good and went for the bouillon instead). I think the moral is that it’s a pretty forgiving recipe–the best kind! The only con is that it took a long time with all the chopping and browning. If you have the time, it’s a fabulous, restaurant-quality meal that is probably pretty hard to mess up!
I just got an Insta Pot for Mother’s Day and have been looking for a beef stew recipe when I stumbled upon this!! It came out fantastic, the stewing beef was soooo tender!! I pretty much followed the recipe as written. I only used 2 cups of red wine *(figured I’d rather drink it and use the broth, lol) and added more broth. I will add more carrots next time and serve over potatoes, used egg noodles this time. Thank you, it was lovely to imagine me cooking like Julia Child….albeit with an InstaPot….LOL!!
Yes add another carrot. Do separate to complete gravy, it worked correctly. Used the pearl onions even though I didn’t think I’d like them, I did! I used 3 cups of wine, it was perfect. I also had the correct amount for gravy.
I used my cast iron and old club ware in oven.
I did put my bay leaves in my tea ball to keep it separate but still adding flavor to dish. I used regular button mushrooms. Very good recipe! And accurate! Trust it!
It’s not cheap, cost me $16 for just the meat! But it was rich in flavor as well!
Sad I can’t post pics🥲
I have been making Julia Child’s Boeuf Burguignon for years and years. I use the version the French Chef Cookbook by Julia Child – The book contains recipes demonstrated on the TV series and it’s the first Julia Child Cookbook I ever bought. I will say the recipe changes from book to book. This one has no requirement for carrots or chopped onion. I have made it exactly as written and also made some changes similar to the ones you use. I, too, just chop and saute’ the bacon instead of boiling to remove the salt from salt pork. I also use frozen onions. I have found them at Trader Joe’s – they are the small white 1″ onions. I love your idea of adding them in sooner than the recipe directs I’m making this tonight for a large family dinner tomorrow. I found small onions – pearl size – frozen and plan to use them but if I put them in too early they will turn to mush so I have to wait. The store where I got them had 1# frozen pearl onions and they are tiny! I did adjust the herbs, doubled the recipe for a lot of people. I only had Merlot and not enough for 6 cups for the doubled recipe so I used the whole bottle of wine and a quart of beef broth. It’s cooking and smells wonderful. I plan to serve it over noodles – I usually serve it this way and add in a tossed salad and garlic bread. I love your recopes and thought I’d check out how you do it. I like your changes but I doubt I will strain out the sauce – I have never done that and it’s always worked out perfectly. I noticed that many said the cooking liquid reduced substantially and I’m wondering fi they forgot to cover the pot while cooking? I always have a lot of gravy in this when I’m done. Thank you again for your terrific recipes.
I chose the instant pot version and LOVED it. It IS BETTER the next day. Mine was still rather “loose” so I did add some corn starch and cooked to thicken. Beef was SUPER tender and I did add the mushrooms at the end so they did not shrivel up. Most of the pearl onions were gone but the flavor was there! Served over egg noodles
I’ve always wanted to make Julia Child’s famous recipe! This recipe was easy to follow and it was a huge hit! I followed the oven method and cooked for about 2.5 hours. Both stores I checked didn’t have brisket so I went with chuck stew meat (already cut). Others mentioned concerns with using this meat before trying it, but rest assured, it was fall apart tender and delicious! As others mentioned, I agree there is no need to strain the sauce and add it back to the pot, just remove the bay leaves after putting it back on the stove top to simmer/thickens. I had no issues with losing liquid. Just be sure you are using an actual stock pot that is also meant for the oven as you need a tight seal when cooking that long, otherwise too much will evaporate. I added an extra cup of broth so we had extra and added a lot more carrots (x4) and it still could’ve used more.
That was DELICIOUS! Thank you.
THIS is the recipe you make when you want complete comfort food. Make the recipe as is, don’t substitute anything. The depth of flavor is incredible and the ingredients are there to create those layers. You will come away wondering how you could make a dish as wonderful as this. It is THAT GOOD. My husband took one bite and asked when I would make it again because it was such a gratifying meal. The kids loved it too. Win-win! 💗
I made this tonight and let me tell you, I AM SOOOO IMPRESSED! Everything about this dish wash perfect and it looked exactly like your pictures. The beef was soft and the sauce had such a beautiful flavour – no taste of alcohol! 10/10 would recommend!
This recipe was solidly outstanding! I was a little intimidated by the long ingredient list and lots of steps to follow, but after the 1st bottle of wine everything was so much easier!! Thank you so much for sharing and for adding the alternatives, this was so very helpful!
I made the slow cooker version, followed everything pretty exactly except I was too lazy to pat the beef dry (maybe the way ours was packaged didn’t really need it?). Pros: it tastes amazing. We are two big eaters, and this was enough for 3 nights of dinners, so 6 portions easily. It is very filling. Night 1, we had it with crusty baguette, dipping the baguette in to soak up the sauce. Night 2, we had over mashed potatoes. Tonight we will try over either rice or pasta. I think the second night was even better as the flavors really settled. I used 2 1/2 cups of red cooking wine and 2 1/2 cups of liquid where you dissolve the beef bouillon in the boiling water (I bought beef broth by mistake instead of stock so I wasn’t sure it would taste good and went for the bouillon instead). I think the moral is that it’s a pretty forgiving recipe–the best kind! The only con is that it took a long time with all the chopping and browning. If you have the time, it’s a fabulous, restaurant-quality meal that is probably pretty hard to mess up!