Easy One Pot Beef Bourguignon Recipe for Two

The hardest part of this easy Beef Bourguignon recipe is it's pronunciation! Here is the proper way to pronounce this lovely dish ( boor-gee-nyawn ). Click to hear pronunciation and a few facts about the history of Bourguinon.

Comfort food at it's best. This simple recipe is a perfect one-pot meal to slow cook on a chilly afternoon.  A perfect make-ahead meal and it's freezer friendly.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• No Fuss Instructions
• Tips to make this simple Beef Bourguignon even easier.
• Can Beef Bourgiugnon be Made ahead?
• What's the difference between Beef Bourguignon and Beef Stew?
• 📖 Recipe

For an easy and elegant peasant style stew, serve with a hunk of french bread.  

Ingredients

• beef chuck steak - this is a good inexpensive cut of beef to use. you can also use a round steak.
• beef stock - for ease I use "better than bouillon"
• pearl onions - these really give the stew a nice look and slightly sweet and mild flavor.
• mushrooms - use fresh brown mushrooms for the best taste.
• butter - unsalted preferred.
• bacon - the original version uses Pancetta which is very similar to Bacon, both are cured pork belly.
• vegetable oil - don't cringe, but I usually use Crisco, but a corn or canola vegetable oil can be used.
• dry red wine - any dry red wine is good, but use one that you enjoy drinking and pair with the meal. A Chianti is always a good choice.
• garlic - a tubed chunky garlic or a jarred minced can be substituted for fresh.
• flour - a simple all-purpose flour is used to coat the beef.
• brown sugar - light brown sugar, don't use granulated sugar.
• fresh oregano - id substituting dried oregano only use 1 teaspoon.

No Fuss Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

First gather and measure out all the the ingredients

Wash and slice the vegetables. Next cut the chuck roast into 2-inch cubes and slice the bacon into 1-inch strips.

Heat olive oil Dutch oven over medium heat. Fry the bacon until fully cooked and crisp. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel to soak up the grease.

Sprinkle the beef with brown sugar and brown, transfer to the plate with the bacon and set aside.

Spoon the flour and season with salt and pepper. Stir until the flour begins to brown.

Add the wine and beef stock, stir to loosen any browned bits of meat. Add the beef and broken bacon back into the Dutch Oven. Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, brown sugar, and oregano.

Add the carrots and pearl onions. Simmer for a few minutes.

Cover the Dutch Oven, and place in the preheated oven and cook for about 2 hours or until the beef is fork-tender.

Remove from the oven and add the mushrooms and cook on the stovetop over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Skim off any fat that rises to the surface.

To finish, increase the heat to medium-high and bring the sauce to a slow boil. boil the beef bourguignon for about 5 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken.

Tips to make this simple Beef Bourguignon even easier.

If you normally don't have red wine around the house, keep a couple of mini bottles around for cooking.  You can also substitute the red wine with a diluted red wine vinegar of one  tablespoon of red wine vinegar and one tablespoon of water.  

If bacon isn't a breakfast staple in your fridge, and you anticipate more recipes using bacon, it is easily freezable.  Purchase  a package and roll up the raw slices, place on a cookie sheet and freeze, when frozen place in freezer bag for later use.  You can also freeze cooked bacon.

Hate peeling, chopping or pressing garlic, purchase a small jar of minced garlic instead.

This recipe calls for fresh oregano, but you can substitute dried. also.  I started a small herb garden including basil, cilantro, and oregano since these are three fresh herbs I mostly use in my cooking.

If you don't have demi-glaze on hand just increase the beef stock by ¼ cup. 

Can Beef Bourgiugnon be Made ahead?

Yes, to freeze, cool completely and then transfer individual servings to freezer containers or freezer bags. Label with the contents and date and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.

What's the difference between Beef Bourguignon and Beef Stew?

My opinion is that a Beef Stew is the American version of the French Beef Bourguignon. An American Stew usually has a tomato base and includes potatoes.

Beef Bourguignon is always cooked with wine and thus needs to be cooked slowly to fully incorporate the flavors of the wine.

For a great weekend meal try my Sunday Roast. The roast makes wonderful cold roast beef sandwiches the next day.