Mikes Burgundy Beef

Beef Bourguignon

INGREDIENTS
1 lbs/454 g braising or stewing beef

Salt and pepper

1 Tablespoon Dried Mixed Herbs
3 cloves of garlic (chopped finely)

¼ cup/56 ml olive oil

Bouquet Garni

4 onions small
1 glass /300 ml Red Wine
4 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 bouquet garni

Corn Flour (Corn Starch) to thicken

EQUIPMENT
Dutch oven (or large, heavy-bottomed pot)
wooden spoon
large spoon or ladle

Method

Cut up the beef into 1 inch cubes and place in a deep dish
Finely chop the garlic and sprinkle over the beef
Season with freshly ground sea salt and pepper
Sprinkle with the dried herbs
Pour over ⅛ cup olive oil and stir the beef to coat
Add the red wine and stir in
Cover and leave the beef to marinade for between 1 and 3 hours
In the meantime, peel the carrots and chop them into a saucepan
Peel and roughly chop the onions into the pan with the carrots
Add a little salt and the bouquet garni
Barely cover with water and bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer until the carrots are tender
When ready to assemble and cook the Beef Bourguignon, strain the beef pieces from the marinade but keep the liquid
Put ⅛ cup olive oil in the Dutch Oven, or heavy based pan and heat
Place the strained beef pieces into the pan and cook, turning often to avoid burning
When the meat is browned, add the onions and carrots along with the liquid they have been cooked in, including the bouquet garni
Stir and add the retained liquid in which the beef was marinated
Bring the pan to a boil, stirring to prevent any burning or sticking of the meat to the pan
Lower the heat and simmer very slowly for 3 hours. After 2 hours, taste the liquid and adjust the seasoning if required. If there looks like too much liquid, leave the lid off for a while and allow to reduce
Thicken, if required, after the cooking period with corn flour (corn starch)

Serve hot with baked Jacket Potato and broccoli, or any other green vegetable.

It makes a good accompiment to a plain Cous Cous instead of potato and broccoli.