Boeuf Bouguignon recipe!

[Saviolo]

Okay, it's been a rough year, and everyone's exhausted and depressed, and we all need some comfort food, right? Well, this is definitely the most complicated recipe we've ever done for our channel, but it is amazingly delicious. This is an adaptation of the French classic Boeuf Bourguignon, and believe it or not, we've simplified this! It's got a lot of steps, but it is truly a delicious and decadent dish. Basically it is beef stewed or braised in red wine, and is full of delicious and rich things. Bacon, red wine, beef, butter...

Traditionally this is made with a red wine from the Burgundy region of France, but we love to buy local. Thankfully, Ontario has some stunning wineries, and we used a 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon from an amazing local winery called Kacaba. Any delicious big red will do. Also, we highly recommend that you use a wine that you have more than one bottle of, that way you can drink the same wine you've used in the recipe! (this is also a good reminder to use nice wine in your cooking, it really will make it better!)

[mitch96]

1. Question

Not knowing wine at all, what do you mean by a Big red? Flavor? if so what kind of flavor? strong?
m

[Saviolo]

2. By a "big red" what I mean is:

Something in the style of a big burgundy-style wine. Something with a nice tannic structure. I would avoid light red wines like Beaujoulais, Pinot Noir, or Baco Noir and stick with wines with a bigger tannic structure like Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Shiraz/Syrah, Merlot, Primitivo, or even Zinfandel (not white zinfandel, stick with actual red wines). I'm not the world's biggest fan of those huge California reds, I find their tannic structure to be a little overbalanced, but if you like them, then they will do well in this recipe.

Stick away from wines that used dried fruit (like Barolo) or wines that are fortified (like Port) for this recipe. The wine doesn't need to be expensive. A lovely, well-balanced Cab Franc is a great choice for Boeuf Bourguignon.

[mitch96]

3. "Something in the style of a big burgundy-style wine"

I can do that. I'll just get a burgundy...
More questions... What do tannins taste like?? Like tanning leather??? I looked it up but it just says it makes wine dry. No mention of flavor.. My rule of thumb is if the wine has more alcohol it's drier, less is more sweet..
Ya know.. Change the meat and the wine and you could use this braise/stew for a wide combinations. Lamb? Goat? Pork? iguana?...... just kidding... lots if iguana in So Fla..
I'll defiantly try the Boeuf version this winter when I want to warm up the house...
Tnx,
m

[Saviolo]

4. Tannins come from the grape skins.

Tannins is another word for the tannic acid that gives red wine much of its colour (tea, too!) and some of its bitterness. You know when you drink a great big red wine like a Merlot or a California Zinfandel and you get that feeling in your mouth like your molars are wearing mittens? That's tannic acid.

The thing about tannins is that they are readily neutralized by fats. That's why you can enjoy a strongly tannic red wine with some brie or pate, then after the cheese is gone, you take another sip of wine and it comes back to bite you! All of the fat in this recipe (beef, pork, butter) will even out those tannins, which is why you want to start with a wine that's got a good tannic structure to begin with.

[mitch96]

5. "feeling in your mouth like your molars are wearing mittens? "

Great visual and almost spit out my oatmeal!! Thanks for the education on tannins.. Ok, big tannins with fat.. That works for me... Would the acid in the wine and tomato paste help to balance the fat also? So would a wine with tannins coat the glass well?
m

[Saviolo]

6. It won't exactly coat the glass

The feeling of tooth mittens is really just the tannic acid reacting with your saliva and teeth, it's not a coating per se. You won't be able to see if a wine is more tannic until you taste it, but highly tannic wines do tend to be darker red, plum, or black cherry coloured, because the longer the wine sits on the skins, the more tannins it will develop (like tea steeping for a long time).

But yes, the beauty of this dish is that the fats balance out the acids. There are sugars in the carrots and onion, and there is acid in the wine and the tomato paste, and these combine with the pork fat, beef fat, and butter to balance everything else. The end result is still very rich, don't get me wrong. Rich and unctuous, but it doesn't really taste fatty. You can make it even less fatty if you take the time to skim after the simmering stage.