Google+ Allergy-Free Vintage Cookery: A French Variation on Beef Stew

background

Thursday, November 29, 2012

A French Variation on Beef Stew

French Beef Stew with White Wine

So I was staring into my fridge this morning, wondering why I had defrosted that stew beef when I didn't have any good vegetables to cook with it, when I spotted a half-empty bottle of white wine.  Now, as we all know, typically red wine would be the choice to pair with beef, whether eating it or cooking it, but I was in one of those curious moods, and decided to search online to see if I could make something interesting with tough beef and white wine.

Lo and behold, I came across a French recipe for a "daube," which is a version of stew that's cooked in the oven (instead of on the stove, as I am used to).  This simple recipe was just what I was looking for, and I have to tell you, I think I like this version of stew better than my fallback recipe which contains beef, beer, potatoes, carrots, and chunky tomatoes.  According to Wikipedia, a traditional daube is cooked in three stages, and cooled for an entire day between each stage.  Ha!  Guess I won't be turning into a traditional French cook anytime soon :)


French Beef Stew

1 lb stew beef, cut into chunks
2 Tbsp oil
salt & pepper
1/2 bottle white wine
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 cup pearl onions
2 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
12 oz diced tomatoes & their liquid
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp thyme

Preheat oven to 300 degrees (275 for convection).  Add salt and pepper to beef, then brown in oil on stovetop over medium heat.  Remove to heavy casserole dish with slotted spoon.  Add wine to pan drippings and simmer 2 minutes, scraping bottom of pan to release brown bits.  Whisk in mustard, then pour into casserole dish.  Add onions, garlic, tomatoes, and spices and stir.  Bake covered 1 -2 hours.  Serve over mashed potatoes.

Note:  This makes three to four small servings (it's a small batch because I only had 1/2 a bottle of leftover wine).  If you would like to double the recipe, you will need two casserole dishes.


Shared with Allergy Free Wednesday at The Tasty Alternative and Real Food Wednesday with Kelly the Kitchen Kop and the Hearth and Soul Hop with Premeditated Leftovers and Pennywise Platter at The Nourishing Gourmet and Slightly Indulgent Tuesday at Simply Sugar and Gluten Free and Allergy Friendly Day After Thanksgiving with Cybele Pascal and Made From Scratch Monday at Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease.

2 comments:

  1. Your Daube au Boeuf sounds delicious, and I like your much speedier method of cooking it. It's amazing how you can pair white wines with red meats and vice versa. Recently I tried a Coq au Vin using white wine with one of Nigella's recipes and it was yummy too.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, this sounds absolutely mouth-watering! I can't wait to try it :) Thanks for sharing this month at our linky!

    ReplyDelete