By Julia Moskin
- Total Time
- About 5 hours, plus marinating
- Rating
- 4(1,225)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Red wine and beef are such an elemental combination that it's worth mastering the technique for a great stew: Sauté the ingredients quickly to caramelize and reduce, then cook through very slowly (preferably in a low oven, but see our Notes on how to cook in the slow cooker or pressure cooker). You can use any wine you like, since it will be cooked for a long time: the alcohol, acidity and fruitiness that make wine lovely in the glass are not so nice in the bowl; they have to be tamed by simmering. But the tangy, syrupy taste they leave behind is an ideal counterpoint to red meat. Celery is optional because some don't like it, but note that it's not eaten: It just provides a green flavor note alongside the sweet carrots and earthy potatoes.
Featured in: Mastering the Art of Beef Stew
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Ingredients
Yield:8 to 10 servings
- 3½ to 4pounds well-marbled beef stew meat, preferably chuck, cut into large (2-by-2½-inch) pieces
- 2large sprigs fresh thyme
- 2bay leaves
- About a dozen juniper berries
- ½bottle red wine (not sweet)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4garlic cloves (1 smashed and peeled, 3 minced)
- 4tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3stalks celery (optional)
- 3large carrots
- 2onions
- 1large, starchy potato, such as Idaho
- 3ounces pancetta (or French ventrèche), diced small (optional)
- 3tablespoons olive oil
- 3tablespoons tomato paste
- Bouquet garni (2 sprigs fresh thyme, 2 sprigs fresh rosemary or parsley, 2 bay leaves, 6 juniper berries, 4 whole cloves, 1 teaspoon dried orange peel, wrapped in cheesecloth and tied)
- ½bottle red wine
- Chicken broth, as needed
- 3tablespoons chopped parsley
- 1tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves (or use additional parsley), for garnish
For Marinating
To Finish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)
496 calories; 23 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 19 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 42 grams protein; 1007 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Marinate the meat: In a large bowl, combine all the marinade ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate in the bowl or a thick sealable plastic bag for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day.
Step
2
When ready to cook, strain off the marinade and reserve for cooking. Drain meat on paper towels and pat until very dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Step
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Place a large, heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid on the stove and rub the bottom with the smashed, peeled clove of garlic, until coated with the garlic’s oils. Discard garlic.
Step
4
Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, and cook over medium heat until shimmering. Add half the meat and brown gently on both sides while preparing the vegetables. There’s no need for a hard crust to form; a little browning is all that’s required. When browned, remove meat to paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and meat. Return all the browned, drained meat to the pot.
Step
5
Meanwhile, cut the celery (if using) and carrots into large chunks. Peel and chop the onions. Peel and dice the potato.
Step
6
Heat oven to 250 degrees. In a separate skillet, heat pancetta (if using) and olive oil over low heat. Cook gently until the fat renders. When the pork fat is running, add onions, celery, carrot, onion and minced garlic. (If not using pancetta, simply heat olive oil and add vegetables and garlic.) Cook gently, stirring, until softened and golden, about 10 minutes. Raise the heat, add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until fragrant and sizzling. Add the bouquet garni, reserved marinade and potato. Let bubble fiercely for 5 to 10 minutes, until liquid is thickened and syrupy. Add mixture, once cooked, to the pot with the meat.
Step
7
Pour in the wine and, if needed, enough broth to just cover the ingredients. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer, cover tightly and bake 4 to 5 hours, until the meat is soft enough to eat with a spoon and the sauce is rich and thick. After 4 hours, if liquid seems thin, uncover pot for the rest of the cooking.
Step
8
When done, let cool slightly, uncovered. Remove and discard celery (if using) and bouquet garni. To thicken the stew, use a fork to mash some of the carrots and potatoes into the liquid; or, remove and purée them, then add back in. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and lots of freshly ground pepper.
Step
9
Reheat and serve immediately, or let cool and refrigerate. Serve within 3 days; the flavor will only improve. Garnish each serving with a sprinkling of chopped thyme and parsley.
- To make in an electric pressure cooker, do Steps 1 through 6 in the cooker, using the sauté function, or on top of the stove, transferring it all to the cooker when ready. In Step 7, do not add the remaining ½ bottle red wine; instead, pour in chicken broth just to come halfway up the ingredients. Seal cooker, bring to high pressure and cook for 45 minutes. Rapidly release the pressure. Resume recipe in Step 8. To make in a slow cooker, do Steps 1 through 6 on top of the stove. In Step 7, do not add the remaining ½ bottle red wine: Instead, pour in chicken broth just to barely cover the ingredients. Cook on low as described in Step 7, and resume recipe in Step 8.
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1,225
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Cooking Notes
Matthew
Wow. No. Rub the garlic for the oils and then burn it during the searing process? No thanks.Brown gently? No, brown thoroughly, if you want to develop flavor. There’s IS a need for crust to form, that's where the flavors develop. "When browned, remove meat to paper towels to drain". Sigh. No. Unless you're serving the paper towel where all that flavor ends up. All those juices belong right back in the stew pot.And no olive oil, a neutral oil with a higher smoke point.
Todd
What is the purpose of marinating in this recipe? Does it add any value that the 5 hours of baking in wine would not achieve by itself?
Angela Sasso
Absolutely agree re browning - I toss my cubed beef in seasoned flour before browning in hot oil which helps.Julia Child in Mastering the Art of French Cooking actually goes one step further. After the meat is browned, she advises sprinkling tablespoon of flour over the meat and puts it in the oven for 5 minutes which "toasts" the floured meat. She then takes it out, adds the wine and broth to deglaze the pan on top of the stove. The result is a glorious deep flavoured stew.
Karen
In step 6, you say to use a separate skillet - but in step 7 we seem to be back to the pot (I will be using a dutch oven). When do you transfer the sauteed ingredients into the pot? is it even necessary to do so? Can I just do all the sauteeing in the dutch oven and then add the browned meat just before pouring the wine in?Thanks!
Elizabeth Malloy
One potato for 8-10 servings? Meaty-juicy potatoes are the best part. I want more than one-tenth of a potato.
Matthew
Exactly. Recipe fails on many accounts. Sad it passed by the editor. They meant to add the step pouring the contents of the skillet into the pot with beef. And THEN add wine. The "ingredients" here means the beef, as in just to cover the beef/veggies. Although some would say to bring just below the top level of the beef to develop more flavor. Or course there was never a need for a separate skillet to prepare the pancetta/veggies/tomato paste, could have all been done in the stew pot.
Julia Moskin
Thank you for noticing! We are fixing this. At the end of Step 6, the contents of the skillet should be poured over the meat in the Dutch oven.
James Stolich (CookWithJames.com)
I cannot believe how many angry people are on this forum and reacting to this recipe. If you just watch the video and pay attention it's all there. So simple and beautiful. I loved reading Ms. Moskin's treatise on beef stew and thought the video was really well done. I always tweak recipes to my liking and love the fact that this version calls for a very long cooking time in a proper Dutch oven or similar slow-braising vessel. Stop complaining people and just cook!
Barbara
I like to add a turnip and/or parsnip for an added sweetness.
Bill Rosenblatt
Why on earth would you drain the browned meat into a paper towel?? You waste all that flavor.If it's fat you're concerned about, here's a better idea. Use the meat juices. When the meat is cooked, drain the liquid into a degreaser, let sit for a few mins so the fat rises to the top, return the juices to the pot, and discard the fat. (Or if you don't have a degreaser, skim fat with a spoon.) This way the fat stays with the dish throughout cooking, adding flavor.
Robert
Have to disagree with Matthew on his critique of the oil choice. The beef is sautéed in vegetable oil, NOT olive oil. The 3 tbs of olive oil (not EV) is used to sauté the veg over low heat. Canola, olive (light, not EV) and grapeseed all have moderately high smoke points so you could sauté the beef in olive oil with no problem. (EV olive oil has a smoke point of only 320F while light olive oil has a smoke point of 460F making it fine for sautéing and even deep frying.)
sj
Would a shot of Tanqueray Gin, which contains juniper berries, impart some of the desired aroma and flavor? - AND MORE.
Jim
Very interesting recipe and discussion. Obviously, there are many ways to cook beef stew well. I'm surprised nothing has been said about the wine, which makes a big difference if you're using a whole bottle. You don't want to use a heavily oaked California cab or merlot. The best wine, recommended by several authors, is a French Rhone, preferably an inexpensive one. We always use a Cotes du Rhone. They usually are raised in stainless steel tanks so no wood, which adds bitterness.
Michael
Tomato paste -- feh! Add some tomatoes when the wine has started to reduce. Mix thoroughly to coat the meat and gently fry the tomatoes. Then add the carrots and onion -- and some unpeeled garlic, which was not rubbed onto the skillet before browning the beef to prevent its burning and ruining the stew. The potatoes should be parboiled and added 30-45 minutes before the stew is done -- they are a garnish.
Richard
Marinate or not. Brown the meat in bite-sized chunks as brown as you'd like, in your favorite oil and some garlic, garlic at the beginning or end of browning. Dice and slice your favorite roots - amounts of each dependent on how much you like the root. Tomato - fresh/paste, or not. Add your favorite savory spices.Do not deviate from this: use a whole bottle of wine and cook the meat and roots for 4-5 hours at 250. BTW, some dumplings on the top of the stew at the end are also awesome.
Wilbo
I like to blend the celery, some of the carrots, and a spoonful of grainy mustard to thicken and flavor and the stew at the end of cooking.
Charles
Nah. I tried this, but I'm sorry I doubted mom's recipe. Flour the beef (in this version, sauce never became "rich and thick"). Add the veggies half-way through (in this version, everything was mush after three hours). No reason to marinate.
Charles
are we crushing the juniper berries? seems necessary to release flavor
Jenny
I made this even though I didn’t have enough meat, only .75lbs, but added extra potato and some green beans. Dee dam lish. I needed lots more broth when I pulled it out of the oven at 4 hours but it incorporated like I knew what I was doing. Will probably make it just like this again.
Erin H
Wow, this was incredible. I followed instructions on marinating and only lightly browning the meat to great effect. The beef was melt-in-your-mouth tender, and the flavoring was unlike anything I'd made before. Different and, dare I say, even better than our beloved Beef Bourguignon recipe. I substituted a splash of orange extract for the dried orange peel and cracked cardamom pods for the juniper berries. My husband couldn't stop raving about it. This is going into our cannon of best meals ever
first try
I’ve never posted to the NYT Food section before. But just this simple note. The recipe really does work. Many of these complaints seem to come from perfectionists. If you’re a beginner just try this recipe as is. Then develop from there. The video is a great tool.
Perhaps The Best Stew I've Ever Made
I've been on a mission to find the best beef stew for several years, since my nan never wrote her recipe down. This is by far one of the the best if not the best stews I've ever made. I did use about 2 additional cups of chicken stock to have enough liquid to cover the solid ingredients, and I used and kept the celery. I've made several versions of beef bourguignon, and this is still better.
JYJ
Lot of reviews abt how wrong the recipe is - and most don’t even state if they made it! Well I made it mostly as written (marinated the meat and then browned it using grape-seed oil until most of the pieces had a nice crust). Really good!
kathleen
I made like the lazy version of this and it turned out spectacular. I did it all in a Dutch oven. Skipped the marinade. Browned the meat with a nice crust. Took the meat out, threw in pancetta and garlic, then the veggies, then the tomato paste. Poured in a bottle of Pinot noir and beef broth to cover everything. Skipped whatever that bundle of herbs was and threw in bay leaves, sprigs of thyme and rosemary. Let it simmer for 2 hours. Thin broth but decadent, half the work of this recipe.
Rob
Is there anyone here who actually discarded the celery once the stew is complete? Why not just eat it? Also, there is a considerable amount of water that's released when the veggies are cooking. It's unclear whether the water should be cooked off becaus, later in the recipe, that water could've been helpful while making the syrupy sauce.
John
Love this recipe. My wife and I have made it 5-6 times in the last year and are about to make two more batches this weekend to take to in-laws that are recovering from surgery and mother-in-law we won’t be with this Christmas because of the pandemic. The only change I’ve made, is what others have already stated here, increasing the potatoes and carrots by 3 or 4 fold.
Herr Burger
I have to disagree with Matthew and Elias on the browning. Maillard-Schmaillard! You want to brown the meat gently-ish - otherwise it‘ll end up „flavorful“ but tough. It’s all about a balance between taste and texture.
Joanna
Fantastic as is. People, this is not beef bourguignon—it’s American beef stew. And it is tasty.
Lolly
I make a pretty mean beef stew myself, and I agree with Matthew. Brown the meat well. I brown small batches of the beef at a time, barely enough pieces to cover the bottom of my slightly oiled cast iron skillet over medium to high heat and brown it very well but not burned. I move the pieces to my Dutch oven, deglaze the skillet with beef broth and pour over the meat in the Dutch oven. Then I repeat this until all the meat is browned. Four pounds of meat will take a long time.
katleen
I really like this stew! It’s sooooooooooooooo good
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