Try this Slow Cooker Boeuf Bourguignon recipe.
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ingredients
- i've wanted to make beef burgundy ever since i got but i wanted to find a way to fix it in a slow cooker. my version of the popular beef stew is still rich, hearty and delicious, but without the need to watch on the stovetop or in the oven. —crystal jo bruns, iliff, colorado
- slow cooker boeuf bourguignon
- slow cooker boeuf bourguignon recipe photo by tast
- test kitchen approved
- 3 reviews
- featured in
- 32 healthy holiday slow cooker
- total time
- prep: 30 min. + marinating cook: 8 hours
- makes
- 12 servings (2/3 cup each)
- 3 pounds beef stew meat
- 1-3/4 cups dry red wine
- 3 tablespoons dried minced onion
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes
- 8 bacon strips chopped
- 1 pound whole fresh mushrooms quartered
- 24 pearl onions peeled (about 2 cups)
- hot cooked whole wheat egg noodles optional
- Carbohydrate 49.1783109523973 g
- Cholesterol 1050.4328926 mg
- Fat 345.291927573886 g
- Fiber 3.68131848697552 g
- Protein 287.02462477135 g
- Saturated Fat 129.162167888386 g
- Serving Size 1 1 (2116g)
- Sodium 3208.36165958575 mg
- Sugar 45.4969924654217 g
- Trans Fat 41.4459331284115 g
- Calories 4521 calories
Step-by-step
- Place beef in a large resealable plastic bag; add wine, oil and seasonings. Seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate overnight.
- In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove with a slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Discard drippings, reserving 1 tablespoon in pan.
- Add mushrooms and onions to drippings; cook and stir over medium-high heat until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer.
- Drain beef, reserving marinade; transfer beef to a 4- or 5-qt. slow cooker. Sprinkle beef with flour and salt; toss to coat. Top with bacon and mushroom mixture. Add reserved marinade.
- Cook, covered, on low 8-10 hours or until beef is tender. Remove bay leaf. If desired, serve stew with noodles.
Unlike a rapid-boiling beef stew that tightens muscle fibers into rubbery bullets, classical bourguignon relies on a protracted enzymatic breakdown of collagen. Tough cuts like chuck or stew meat contain dense connective tissue networks consisting of triple-helix protein chains. Exposing these tough cuts to a sustained thermal environment between 180°F and 200°F for eight to ten hours causes insoluble collagen to melt into soluble gelatin, transforming what would otherwise be shoe leather into a luxurious, mouth-coating unctuosity that thickens the surrounding braising liquid.
Managing Moisture and Starch Interaction
Coating the drained, marinated beef in all-purpose flour prior to slow cooking serves a dual chemical purpose that alters the final sauce consistency. As the starches hydrate and gelatinize during the long thermal phase, they trap suspended fat droplets, preventing the red wine reduction from separating into an oily film. Tossing the meat directly with the dry flour rather than stirring it into the liquid avoids lump formation, because individual starch granules hydrate independently when dusted directly onto a damp surface. When substituting dry red wine with a non-alcoholic alternative like beef stock spiked with two tablespoons of red wine vinegar, expect a thinner final sauce because organic acids and tannins present in actual wine assist in protein denaturation.
- Stir flour thoroughly to coat all surfaces, preventing pockets of raw starch from forming dry lumps during the eight-hour simmer.
- Discard excess bacon drippings completely while reserving precisely one tablespoon to maintain optimal fat-to-protein ratios for sautéing aromatics.
- Test tenderness using a fork; if the beef offers mechanical resistance at the eight-hour mark, continue covering and cooking for an additional two hours.
