(Adapted from Julia
Child)
I finally decided to try this recipe after
hearing so much about it and from watching Julie and Julia. Unfortunately, I
wasn’t able to follow the recipe to a T, because I didn’t have the necessary
ingredients and I didn’t want to open the oven.
In the end, it turned out okay. Something I would try again, as long as
I have 2-3 hours to spare. The main recipe here is the one I did, but I’ll
include in parenthesis the method that
was originally done by Julia Child.)
 |
| top to bottom: beef shank, bacon |
6oz bacon, cut into 1
cm strips (in the original recipe, an
uncut piece of bacon was used. The rind was removed and both meat and skin was
boiled in water. Its cut into lardons,
which are centimeter-sized pieces, and then the procedure continues as it is)
3 tbsp oil
500 gms beef (Julia Child used beef chunks, but I had
shank on hand so that’s what I used.)
 |
clockwise, from right: carrots, onions,
garlic, bay leaf, thyme, tomato paste |
1 large carrot, cut
into big chunks (I cut them into big
chunks so that at the end, I can still serve them with the meat. In Julia’s
recipe, I have the impression that they end up as mush and are discarded at the
end).
1 medium onion, french
cut
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp flour
2 cups red wine (rule of thumb is - if you can drink it, cook with it)
2 cups beef stock (I used 4 beef cubes in 1 L water, which is
more than enough to cover the amount needed for this recipe and its sides)
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 cloves garlic mashed
with 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
1. Saute bacon in oil
for 2 to 3 mins until browned. Remove with slotted spoon. Set aside. Reheat
oil.
2. Dry beef in paper
towels. Brown. Remove and set aside with bacon.
3. In same pan, brown
vegetables, app 10 mins. Pour out excess fat.
4. (If beef cubes are used, add beef in this
step and coat with flour as well. Brown also.) Add salt, pepper and flour.
Toss together until slightly browned. (In
the original recipe, after the flour and seasoning is added to the beef and
vegetables, the entire casserole was placed in a 400F oven for around 15
minutes or until the meat was browned even more.)
 |
| from left to right: red wine, beef stock |
5. Add tomato paste,
garlic and herbs. Stir in wine and stock. Scrape up the brown bits at the
bottom of the pan. (Actually, in the
original, the wine was stirred in first before the tomato paste, garlic and
herbs).
6. Transfer to a slow
cooker/crockpot and cook on moderate heat for 2 - 2 1/2 hrs or until meat is
fork tender. (Here I deviated once
again. The dish is supposed to be cooked
in a 350F oven for the said hours).
7. Once done, remove
meat and pour rest of contents of casserole through a sieve set over a
saucepan. Transfer meat, bacon and carrots to a serving platter and set aside.
Garnish with braised onions and sauteed mushrooms (recipes follows).
8. Skim fat off the
sauce. Simmer sauce until approximately 2 1/2 cups of sauce remains, or until
thick enough to lightly coat the back of a spoon. Taste for seasoning. Pour
sauce over meat and vegetables.
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| beef bourguignon, carrots and sides |
SAUTEED MUSHROOMS
 |
| left to right: sliced mushrooms, butter |
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oil
1-1 1/2 cups sliced
mushrooms
Salt and pepper
Heat skillet over high
heat with butter and oil. Be careful not to burn the butter. Once bubbles subside,
add mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Saute for 8-10 mins until
lightly browned. Set aside to serve with beef.
 |
| sauteed mushrooms |
BROWNED BRAISED ONIONS
 |
browned braised onion ingredients
(clockwise, from top):
beef stock, onions, butter,
dried parsley, bay leaf, dried thyme |
Pearl/small onions,
3-5 pcs per person (I couldn’t find any
pearl onions in my supermarket, but luckily enough, there were some small
onions of approximately 1 inch in diameter).
1 1/2 tbsp butter
½ - 1 cup beef stock
Pepper
Parsley sprigs (I didn't have any parsley but i did have dried parsley. Not the same, but I had to adapt)
1 small bay leaf
1/4 tsp thyme
1. In the same pan
where mushrooms were cooked, add an additional 1 1/2 tbsp butter to the fat.
Add onions and saute over moderate heat for approximately 10 mins until brown.
2. Pour in beef stock
until I reached halfway up the onions, and add herbs. Cover and simmer slowly
for 40-50 mins until onions are tender and liquid evaporates. Once done, remove
herbs and serve onions with beef.
 |
| brown braised onions |
GREEN BEANS WITH LEMON
250 gms green beans,
topped and cut to 3 inches length
1 tbsp butter
Grated peel of 1 lemon
1 – 3 tbsp lemon juice
(approximately ½ lemon)
Pepper
1. Steam green beans
until cooked, around 3-5 mins.
2. Heat pan. Melt
butter and toss in cooked beans. Add 1/2
of lemon peel, juice (add tbsp by tbsp,
to make sure it isn’t too sour) and season with pepper. Mix together. Garnish with remaining lemon
peel to serve.
 |
| green beans with lemon |
CHEESY GARLIC MASHED
POTATOES
 |
mashed potato ingredients (clockwise from top right):
garlic cloves, melted butter, cheese spread,
parmesan cheese, cut potatoes |
4 large potatoes, cut
into chunks
4 large whole garlic
cloves
1/2 cup cheese spread (there wasn’t a lot of choices in terms of
cheese in the small supermarket I went to, so I decided to try this)
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter
1/3 cup parmesan
cheese
Salt and pepper
1 tsp melted butter
Parmesan cheese to
garnish
 |
| finished mashed potato |
1. Boil potatoes and
garlic together in salted water until potatoes are cooked, approximately 15
mins.
2. Heat cheese spread
and milk together. Set aside.
3. Mash potatoes with
melted butter and cheese spread. Add parmesan cheese. Season with salt and
pepper. Transfer to a serving platter and pour with 1 tsp butter. Sprinkle with
parmesan cheese. Serve.
 |
finished dish of beef, carrots, mushrooms, onions,
green beans and mashed potato |
1. Steak was seasoned with salt and pepper and grilled on a grill pan with butter.
