Fancy Feast
I haven't been cooking very much this week. I'm lazy and we have a freezer stuffed with leftovers, so why bother? Yesterday, though, I made a traditional French beef stew, Daube de Boeuf.
It all started with a leftover roast chicken. Yesterday was trash day, so I wanted to pull off the remaining meat to freeze and throw away the chicken carcass. Usually, I put that sort of trash in the freezer because it stinks up the kitchen trash can between pick-ups. But, you see, my freezer is too full to add trash to it, so I decided to go ahead and use the beef roast I had been thawing in the fridge and throw out the packaging and trimmings right away. This recipe takes a while to prepare, because the meat needs to marinate for at least three hours. Perfect! I trimmed the meat and prepared the marinade in the wee hours of the morning, in plenty of time to take the trash out to the curb. Late afternoon, I drained the meat, chopped the rest of the vegetables, layered them in my Dutch oven, poured in the reserved marinade and beef stock, and put it in the oven to cook for several hours. Though it takes quite a while to assemble, the long marinating and cooking times give you plenty of opportunity to clean up the mess you make in the kitchen.
Daube de BoeufLike most stews, this gets better the next day. Don’t be intimidated by the lengthy ingredient list. It’s actually quite a simple recipe.
3# rump pot roast or chuck pot roast, cut into 2 ½” squares, 1” thick
1 ½ c. dry white wine or dry white vermouth
¼ c. brandy, eau de vie or gin
2 T. olive oil
2 t. sea salt
¼ t. freshly ground black pepper
2 T. thyme leaves
1 bay leaf, crumbled
2 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed
2 c. thinly sliced onions [I used a food processor to slice the onions and carrots.]
2 c. thinly sliced carrots
½# lean bacon, cut into ¼” thick strips and 2” long, simmered in water 10m, drained and dried
1 ½ c. sliced mushrooms
2 ¼ c. canned whole, peeled tomatoes, drained and coarsely chopped
1 c. sifted flour, on a plate [I omitted the sifting. It's just too much work, and not necessary.]
1-2 c. beef brothIn a large nonreactive bowl, combine beef and next 10. Cover and marinate at least 3h, stirring up frequently.
Remove the beef from the marinade and drain in a sieve. Preheat the oven to 325.
Line the bottom of a deep 6-qt casserole with 3-4 strips of bacon. Strew a handful of the marinade veggies, mushrooms and tomatoes over them. Piece by piece, roll the beef in the flour and shake off excess. Place closely together in a layer over the veggies. Cover with a few strips of bacon and continue with layers of veggies, beef and bacon. End with a layer of veggies and 2-3 strips of bacon.
Pour in the wine from the marinade and enough stock almost to cover the contents of the casserole. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove, cover tightly and set in lower third of the oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers slowly for 3-4 hours. The meat is done with a fork pierces it easily.
Before serving, skim off excess fat. Correct seasoning. The daube can be served with boiled baby white potatoes, lightly crushed and seasoned with melted butter, coarse salt and chopped parsley.
Cooking for Mr. Latte: A Food Lover’s Courtship, with Recipes, by Amanda Hesser, adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Volume 1, by Julia Child.
Daube for 6.
Blanched bacon, while smelling good, looks gross. It contributes a deep smoky and meaty flavor to the daube, but is rather disgusting to find on the end of your spoon. I picked it out of my bowl. I wouldn't omit it from the recipe, it contributes too much to the dish, but if serving this to company, I might think about picking it out afterwards, though tedious. Or, if serving it to good friends or family, I'd just issue a warning and let people pick it out themselves if they wish.
This made plenty of leftovers (more things to add to the freezer!). If it's true that this stew gets better the next day, than it will be outstanding, because it's pretty darn good on the day it's made.