Slow-cooker beef bourguignon

Name: Slow-cooker beef bourguignon
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 7 h
Total time: 7 h 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 3-4 tbsp vegetable oil; 200g smoked lardons; 1 medium onion , finely chopped; 3 celery sticks , finely chopped; 2 large garlic cloves , minced; 2 bay leaves; 6 sprigs of thyme; 2 sprigs of rosemary; 20g flat-leaf parsley , stalks and leaves finely chopped; 1 tbsp tomato purée; 750ml red wine (we used pinot noir); 1kg braising steak , cut into 5cm chunks; 3 tbsp plain flour; 2 large carrots , peeled and cut into 5cm chunks; 250g chestnut mushrooms , cut in half if large; 12 round shallots , peeled; mashed potato or tagliatelle , to serve

Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:50 mins
- Cook:4 hrs - 7 hrs
Easy
Serves 4

Ingredients

3-4 tbsp vegetable oil
200g smoked lardons
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 celery sticks, finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
6 sprigs of thyme
2 sprigs of rosemary
20g flat-leaf parsley, stalks and leaves finely chopped
1 tbsp tomato purée
750ml red wine (we used pinot noir)
1kg braising steak, cut into 5cm chunks
3 tbsp plain flour
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks
250g chestnut mushrooms, cut in half if large
12 round shallots, peeled
mashed potato or tagliatelle, to serve

Method

STEP 1
Turn the slow cooker on to your preferred setting. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the lardons, onion, celery, garlic, bay, thyme, rosemary and parsley stalks for 15 mins, stirring occasionally, until the fat on the lardons has rendered down and the onion and celery are soft but haven’t taken on any colour. Stir in the tomato purée, then deglaze the pan with a splash of red wine, scrapping any caramelised ingredients off the base of the pan. Tip it all into the slow cooker.
STEP 2
Generously season the flour with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss the beef through the flour until evenly coated. Tip any left-over flour into the slow cooker and stir to combine.
STEP 3
Heat a drizzle of oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and, working in batches, fry the beef, carrots and mushrooms until evenly golden. As before, deglaze the pan with red wine between each batch, adding the contents of the pan to the slow cooker. Brown the shallots separately, then set aside.
STEP 4
Finally, deglaze the pan with the remaining wine, bring it to the boil, then pour into the slow cooker, cover and leave to braise for 4-5 hrs if cooking on high, or 6-7 hrs if cooking on low, until the meat pulls apart easily with two forks. Add the shallots to the pan for the final 1 hr 30 mins of cooking.
STEP 5
Once cooked, remove the aromatic herbs and season to taste. Leave to stand for 15 mins then serve sprinkled with parsley, with either silky mashed potato or a bowl of tagliatelle.