Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon (Ina Garten Adapted)

Name: Barefoot Contessa Makes Beef Bourguignon | Barefoot Contessa | Food Network
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 8 h
Total time: 8 h 35 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 225 g smoked streaky bacon, diced; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 1.1 kg beef chuck, patted dry, cut into chunks; 1 tbsp salt; 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper; 450 g carrots, sliced; 2 large yellow onions, sliced; 2 cloves garlic cloves, chopped; 240 ml cognac; 750 ml good red wine; 250 ml beef stock; 1 tbsp tomato puree; 1 small bunch fresh thyme; 450 g chestnut mushrooms, brushed clean, thickly sliced; 30 g butter; 250 g frozen pearl onions; 30 g butter, softened; 3 tbsp plain flour; 6 slices country bread, grilled and rubbed with a cut garlic clove

Source video by Food Network on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

This is Ina Garten's traditional French beef bourguignon, adapted from her oven method for the slow cooker. Chuck beef is browned with bacon, then braised in a full bottle of red wine with cognac, carrots, onions, garlic and thyme. Mushrooms and frozen pearl onions go in towards the end, and the sauce is thickened with a butter-and-flour beurre manie. Serve over grilled bread rubbed with garlic, or with buttered noodles or potatoes.

Slow cooker notes: Original recipe braises in a 250F oven for 1 hour 15 minutes; adapted to slow cooker on Low 8 hours or High 4 hours. Browning of bacon, beef and vegetables is still done in a pan first because slow cookers do not brown. Beef stock reduced slightly is not needed here; full quantities retained because slow cookers retain liquid but a full bottle of wine plus stock is consistent with a stew that simmers covered. Mushrooms sauteed separately and frozen pearl onions added in the final 30 minutes on High to avoid mushiness. Beurre manie stirred in at the end on High to thicken.

Ingredients

Main

225 gsmoked streaky bacon, diced
1 tbspvegetable oil
1.1 kgbeef chuck, patted dry, cut into chunks
1 tbspsalt
2 tspfreshly ground black pepper
450 gcarrots, sliced
2 largeyellow onions, sliced
2 clovesgarlic cloves, chopped
240 mlcognac
750 mlgood red wine
250 mlbeef stock
1 tbsptomato puree
1 small bunchfresh thyme

Mushrooms

450 gchestnut mushrooms, brushed clean, thickly sliced (add late)
30 gbutter

To finish

250 gfrozen pearl onions (add late)

Beurre manie

30 gbutter, softened (add late)
3 tbspplain flour (add late)

To serve

6 slicescountry bread, grilled and rubbed with a cut garlic clove

Method

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan and cook the diced bacon until lightly crisped. Lift out with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat behind, and set aside.
~8 min
Pat the beef chunks dry and season generously with the salt and pepper. Brown in the bacon fat in a single layer, in batches if needed, so the cubes colour evenly on all sides. Transfer to the plate with the bacon, keeping all the juices.
~12 min
Add the carrots and sliced onions to the same pan and saute for about 15 minutes until just tender and the onions are nicely browned. Stir in the chopped garlic for the final minute.
~15 min
Pour in the cognac, stand back and carefully flame it to burn off the alcohol. Once the flames die down, tip the vegetables, beef, bacon and all juices into the slow cooker.
~3 min
Pour the bottle of red wine into the frying pan, scrape up any sticky bits, then add to the slow cooker along with the beef stock, tomato puree and thyme. The liquid should almost cover the meat. Stir gently.
~5 min
Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours or High for 4 hours, until the beef is fork tender.
~480 min
About 30 minutes before the end, melt the butter in a frying pan over high heat and saute the thickly sliced mushrooms for around 10 minutes until tender and golden.
~10 min
Stir the sauteed mushrooms and the frozen pearl onions into the slow cooker. Switch to High if not already, cover and cook for a further 30 minutes.
~30 min
Mash the softened butter and flour together with a fork to make a smooth paste (beurre manie). Stir into the stew a spoonful at a time on High and cook uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
~15 min
Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve the beef bourguignon ladled over slices of grilled bread rubbed with garlic, or with buttered noodles or mashed potato.
~5 min

Frequently asked

Do I really need to brown the meat and bacon first?

Yes. Slow cookers steam rather than brown, so the deep flavour in beef bourguignon comes from the bacon fat, the seared crust on the beef and the caramelised onions. Skipping this step gives a pale, flat-tasting stew.

Can I leave out the cognac?

You can, though it does add a distinctive warmth. If you skip it, replace it with an extra splash of red wine or a little brandy, or simply omit and lean on the bottle of wine.

What red wine should I use?

Use a wine you would happily drink, ideally a Burgundy or another medium-bodied red such as Pinot Noir or a Cotes du Rhone. Avoid anything labelled 'cooking wine'.

Can I make this ahead?

Absolutely. Beef bourguignon is even better the next day. Cool, refrigerate, then reheat gently on the hob or in the slow cooker on Low until piping hot.

Why add the pearl onions and mushrooms at the end?

Cooked from the start they turn grey and mushy. Adding sauteed mushrooms and pearl onions in the final 30 minutes keeps their texture and a touch of freshness in the finished stew.

Extraction notes (transparency): Quantity of frozen pearl onions and beef broth not specified in transcript; sensible amounts inferred. Cognac stated as 'a cup'. Bacon stated as 'about a half a pound'. Salt and pepper quantities (1 tbsp salt, 2 tsp pepper) are explicit. Original cook time and method translated to slow cooker, so cooking timings are adapted estimates rather than direct quotes.