This Hearty Beef Stew Is French Nation Meals at Its Most interesting

For the final a number of weeks, my home has been stuffed with the aroma of scrumptious beef slowly braising in full-bodied crimson wine. It’s smelled a lot like huge, daring reds these days that my household is now insisting I take a little bit break from cooking with wine altogether. The rationale for that is that I’ve been perfecting my daring, full flavored Gascogne-style beef and root vegetable stew—and I’ve beloved each minute of it, it doesn’t matter what my household says.

The Gascogne area is in Southwest France, tucked between Bordeaux and Spain. The area is fashionable amongst culinary aficionados for its earthy flavors, duck and goose foie gras, and different sturdy, lavish dishes. As a result of the area is so well-known for its poultry, particularly duck, it’s not arduous to see why it has a repute for wealthy meals. As with most regional delicacies, you cook dinner with what’s native. Within the case of Gascogne, meaning duck fats as an alternative of olive oil, tannic and exceptionally daring crimson wines, dried prunes from ample plum timber, and the uniquely nutty and caramel-flavored brandy referred to as Armagnac. All of those flavors are integrated into this beef stew.

Ideas for Success When Cooking the Stew

The method for making this stew is pretty simple: Sear the chunks of beef and render bacon to develop a wealthy fond, add aromatics akin to garlic, carrots, and parsnips for earthy taste, deglaze with scrumptious Armagnac, add the wine and broth, then cook dinner at a low temperature for a number of hours till flavorful and tender. A handful of chopped prunes stud the stew for a welcome sweetness that enhances the acidic wine. 

Warmth administration is vital all through the recipe. When searing the meat, ensure the pan is sizzling sufficient to really create a crust on the meat however keep away from too excessive of a temperature or you would scorch the pan. Equally, cook dinner the stew in a really low oven to make sure the muscle fibers and connective tissue within the beef chuck slowly rework into meltingly tender and moist gelatin. It is that gelatin that makes the meat nonetheless appear moist and tender even after the lengthy cooking.

The Greatest Wine Choices for Gascogne-Type Beef Stew

The problem with growing a recipe like that is deciding on the best components. Daube de Boeuf à la Gasconne displays the wealthy, earthy, and daring flavors notable within the delicacies there. The main query is when to stay with conventional components that outline the recipe, and when adjustments are wanted to make it approachable for residence cooks like me who reside outdoors of France.

The principle ingredient in query right here is the wine. The suitable wine on this recipe is kind of vital (a full bottle is used, in spite of everything!). Historically Madiran, a crimson wine from the Gascogne area, is used within the stew. It’s a tannic crimson wine made with tannat grapes, which produce a really strikingly daring taste. I really discovered it tough to take pleasure in consuming this wine, however it hits the best complicated, daring taste when simmered with the meat within the stew. 

However Madiran can typically be difficult to search out in US wine shops, so I additionally examined with extra frequent French crimson wines from Bordeaux and Burgundy. And whereas these wines can definitely produce a tasty stew, these stews didn’t really feel fairly wealthy or complicated sufficient when in comparison with the stew made with Madiran. A strong wine choice, and much simpler to search out, is Cahors, which is predominantly made with malbec grapes. If Madiran and Cahors are unavailable, you possibly can substitute high quality malbec wine in a pinch.

Suggestions for a Balanced Stew

Trying by previous cookbooks, particularly Escoffier: Le Information Culinaire, I discovered {that a} daube was historically made by marinating beef in crimson wine and aromatics. That is one space I do assume it’s price breaking from custom. In my exams, cooking wine-marinated beef resulted in a very boozy flavored stew. 

I do, nevertheless, advocate following the frequent conventional technique of letting the stew settle down after which chill in a single day within the fridge earlier than serving. In my exams, I discovered this produced a richer, extra complicated taste in comparison with consuming the stew when freshly ready. I do know it may be arduous to plan upfront and to attend a full day earlier than tucking into the stew, however in my view, if you will splurge on bottle of wine and duck fats for the dish, it might be a disgrace to not let it develop as a lot taste as potential. I discovered that refrigerating the stew in a single day deepens the flavors and permits them to marry. 

While you’re able to serve the reserved stew, merely spoon off any residual layer of fats from the highest earlier than reheating. You can be rewarded with a lusciously wealthy dish that’s decidedly rustic but complicated, earthy, and scrumptious sufficient to reflect the standard flavors of Gascogne.

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