A classic french dish that has fallen out of favour over the past 20 years. But it packs so much flavour that it's due for a revival. Serve with crusty bread, potatoes and greens.
PREP TIME: 30 min COOK TIME: 3 hours
SERVES: 6
Ingredients
900g braising steak, 1 inch dice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, sliced
500ml red wine
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp Herbes de la Garrigue or 1 tbsp Herbes de Provence or 1 tbsp Bouquet Garni
250g lardons
350g shallots
150g portobello mushrooms, chopped
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 150 ℃
Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a large oven safe pan and heat over a medium high heat. Add the beef, avoiding overcrowding, and sear the beef on all sides
After the beef, add the sliced red onion to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes, before adding the chopped garlic for 1 more minute
Add the beef back into the pan and sprinkle on the flour and Herbes de la Garrigue, Herbes de Provence or Bouquet Garni. Stir the flour to soak up all the juice, and then slowly add the red wine, again stirring all the time
Put the lid on the pan and transfer to the oven for 2 hours
Just before the 2 hours is up, heat the remaining tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and fry the lardons and shallots over a medium heat for 10 minutes until nicely coloured. Add the chopped mushrooms for the final couple of minutes
Remove the pan from the oven, and stir in the shallots, lardons and mushrooms. Add more wine if the dish looks too dry
Cook for a further hour, and serve with your choice of potatoes and greens
Perfect for the festive cold months, irresistible when warm and gooey, but even better after a few days later when they get to their optimum texture - If they last that long!
Annie M
Author