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Julia Child’s BÅ“uf à la Bourguignonne

Julia Child’s BÅ“uf à la Bourguignonne

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Bœuf à la Bourguignonne, also written Bourguignon, called Beef Burgundy is perhaps one of the most famous dishes of Julia Child.  

Boeuf Bourguignon in casserole dish image

The first time I ate Bœuf à la Bourguignonne was decades ago when I was still single and I have the recipe written in an old notebook, probably taken from a magazine. 

Spalomita Chuck Mock Tender veal image

I cooked it for my husband later on and it became his favourite as well and he started cooking it for us, although at a certain point we stopped making it until a couple of years ago.

After watching the film seventeen months ago, I was inspired to try the original recipe. 

After a google search I found a pdf with the original recipe and I made it around October 2009.

Boeuf Bourguignonne is a classic French recipe, that is rightly famous.

The rich combination of flavors; bacon, mushrooms, beef and red wine (I used a Greek fruity red wine called Agiorgitiko, which made it delicious but you can use pinot noir, beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone, Bordeaux St. Emilion or chianti) combine to make a truly special dish that tastes spectacular.   

However, I strongly believe that we cannot strictly follow recipes which were written 50 or more years ago as back then they had a different lifestyle than we do today and using lardons, bacon or other fat was something very usual at the time.   

My husband told me that when they used to live in the village, until he was ten years old, he still remembers that during winter, his parents would eat trahanas soup for breakfast but not the usual way we eat it today. 

Collage ingredients for Boeuf Bourguignon image

They would heat some lard to become very hot and pour it over the soup.  

They needed the energy and fat as they would go into the fields and work very hard all day and of course that fat was burned.  

Today with the lifestyle we are following the lardons and fat will definitely turn into cholesterol, so I made minor changes and did not add the bacon but used only olive oil.  I hope that Julia Child will not be rolling over in her grave 🙂

Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon image

As Julia Child says in her book, “As is the case with most famous dishes, there are more ways than one to arrive at a good boeuf bourguignon. 

Carefully done and perfectly flavoured, it is certainly one of the most delicious beef dishes concocted by man and can well be the main course for a buffet dinner.

Fortunately you can prepare it completely ahead, even a day in advance and it only gains in flavor when reheated”.

Satisfy your craving for comfort food with this classic, Julia Child-inspired beef bourguignon recipe adapted from her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Boeuf Bourguignon with mashed potatoes image

Bœuf à la Bourguignonne, adapted from Julia Child’s original recipe

Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 2 hours
Serves: 6

Ingredients needed:

  • Boneless stewing veal or beef (I used Spalomita Chuck Mock Tender veal)
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Carrots
  • Onion
  • Garlic
  • Sea salt
  • Black pepper
  • All-purpose flour
  • Red dry wine
  • Beef broth
  • Pearl or baby onions
  • Tomato paste
  • Thyme
  • Bay leaf
  • Mushrooms

Let’s make Julia’s Bœuf à la Bourguignonne:

  1. Preheat the oven to 200o C.
  2. Wash the veal or beef, strain, cut into cubes and pat dry.
  3. In a non-stick frying pan sauté the meat, a few pieces at a time. 
  4. Remove to a casserole dish and in the same oil brown the vegetables.  Remove the vegetables to a platter and set aside.
  5. If the oil is brown, discard, wash the frying pan and add a few tablespoons more. 
  6. Sauté the onion and garlic until translucent and return the meat to the frying pan. 
  7. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the flour.  Stir to form a roux.
  8. Add the red wine and stir for a few minutes then add the tomato paste, beef stock, thyme and bay leaf. 
  9. Return the meat to the casserole dish with all the vegetables.
  10. Put the casserole with lid in the oven and bake until the meat is tender, about 2 hours.
  11. In a non-stick frying pan heat one tablespoon of olive oil and sauté the mushrooms.
  12. About 5 minutes before the meat is done add the sautéed mushrooms in the casserole and mix.
  13. Serve Bourguignon with boiled or mashed potatoes, noodles or rice.  If you prefer vegetables you can serve it with lightly cooked seasonal vegetables.
Veal Bourguignonne picture

Julia Child's Bœuf à la Bourguignonne

Yield: 6
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes

Satisfy your craving for comfort food with this classic, Julia Child-inspired beef bourguignon recipe adapted from her cookbook.

Ingredients

  • 1 kilo boneless stewing veal or beef, cut into pieces ( I used "Spalomita" - Chuck Mock Tender veal)
  • 1/3 cup olive oil, divided
  • 4 large carrots, sliced
  • 1 red onion, coarsely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp sea salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups of red dry wine (I used Agiorgitiko)
  • 2 cups beef broth
  • 24 pearl or baby onions
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/2 tsp thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 250 grams mushrooms, finely chopped

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200o C.
  2. Wash the veal or beef, strain, cut into cubes and pat dry.
  3. In a non-stick frying pan sauté the meat, a few pieces at a time 
  4. Remove to a casserole dish and in the same oil brown the vegetables 
  5. Remove the vegetables to a platter and set aside.
  6. If the oil is brown, discard, wash the frying pan and add a few tablespoons more 
  7. Sauté the onion and garlic until translucent and return the meat to the frying pan 
  8. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the flour  Stir to form a roux.
  9. Add the red wine and stir for a few minutes then add the tomato paste, beef stock, thyme and bay leaf  Return the meat to the casserole dish with all the vegetables.
  10. Put the casserole with lid in the oven and bake until the meat is tender, about 2 hours.
  11. In a non-stick frying pan heat one tablespoon of olive oil and sauté the mushrooms.
  12. About 5 minutes before the meat is done add the sautéed mushrooms in the casserole and mix.
  13. Serve Bourguignon with boiled or mashed potatoes, noodles or rice  If you prefer vegetables you can serve it with lightly cooked seasonal vegetables.
Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 347Total Fat 16gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 12gCholesterol 28mgSodium 1503mgCarbohydrates 18gFiber 3gSugar 6gProtein 12g

"These values are automatically calculated and offered for guidance only. Their accuracy is not guaranteed."

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Collage Julia Child's Bœuf à la Bourguignonne image

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi!!

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Eftychia

Wednesday 2nd of March 2011

Ivy, this is another delicious recipe. My mother used to cook a similar recipe. I particularly like the combination of all these ingredients with the mashed potatoes.

simona

Tuesday 1st of March 2011

great recipe and looks so good,ivy!i try this recipe with turkey meat,it's good,too. My recent post PRAJITURA HARISSAHARISSA-ARABIC SEMOLINA CAKE

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