Description
This Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon recipe offers a rich and comforting French classic made easy with a slow cooker. Tender braised beef chunks simmer with shallots, garlic, bacon, carrots, and fresh thyme in a luscious red wine and beef stock sauce. Finished with sautéed mushrooms and optionally thickened for a perfect consistency, it’s a hearty dish best served with creamy mashed potatoes and steamed green vegetables, ideal for a satisfying family meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Meat and Vegetables
- 1kg/2lb 4oz braising beef (shin, cheek, brisket, or chuck steak), cut into 4–5cm/1½–2in chunks
- 250g/9oz shallots, peeled and larger ones halved
- 5 garlic cloves (4 halved, 1 crushed)
- 200g/7oz bacon lardons or smoked streaky bacon, sliced into strips
- 4–5 large carrots, peeled and cut into 3–4 chunks
- 6 fresh thyme sprigs
- 125g/4½oz button mushrooms, larger ones halved or thickly sliced
Dry Ingredients and Liquids
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 3 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 beef stock pot or stock cube, crumbled
- 375ml/13fl oz red wine
- 300ml/10fl oz water (for mixing with flour and purée)
Other
- 15g/½oz butter
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp cornflour (optional, for thickening)
- Freshly steamed green vegetables, to serve
- Creamy mashed potatoes, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat and Add Ingredients: Turn the slow cooker to the high setting to preheat. Add the beef chunks, shallots, halved garlic cloves, bacon strips, carrot chunks, and fresh thyme sprigs into the slow cooker bowl.
- Prepare Sauce Mixture and Start Cooking: In a large bowl, mash together the plain flour, tomato purée, and crumbled beef stock pot or cube. Gradually stir in 300ml (10fl oz) of water until smooth. Pour this mixture into the slow cooker with the beef and vegetables, then add the red wine. Stir well to combine, cover the slow cooker, and cook on low for 7–8 hours or on high for about 5 hours, depending on the cut of beef used.
- Sauté Mushrooms and Garlic: When the casserole is nearly done, heat the butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté until golden brown and softened. Stir in the crushed garlic and cook for another 1–2 minutes until fragrant.
- Combine Mushrooms and Adjust Sauce Thickness: Transfer the sautéed mushrooms and garlic mixture into the slow cooker and stir. If a thicker sauce is desired, blend a little of the sauce from the slow cooker with cornflour in the mushroom frying pan to form a smooth paste. Gradually add another ladleful of sauce, then cook this mixture over medium heat until it thickens significantly. Stir this thickened sauce back into the slow cooker. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper as needed.
- Serve: Serve the beef bourguignon hot with freshly steamed green vegetables and creamy mashed potatoes for a traditional hearty meal.
Notes
- Choose tougher cuts of beef like shin or chuck for best results as they become tender when slow-cooked.
- Cooking times vary based on the beef cut; use low setting for tougher cuts to ensure tenderness.
- If you prefer a thicker sauce, do use the optional cornflour thickening step at the end.
- The red wine not only adds depth but helps tenderize the beef during cooking.
- For garnish and extra freshness, chopped parsley can be sprinkled on top before serving.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 hours on low or 5 hours on high
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Slow Cooking, Sautéing
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving (approx. 300g)
- Calories: 450 kcal
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 580mg
- Fat: 20g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 0.3g
- Carbohydrates: 18g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 45g
- Cholesterol: 110mg
Keywords: beef bourguignon, slow cooker beef stew, French beef stew, slow cooked beef recipe, hearty beef stew
