A French recipe for Bœuf bourguignon

 Bœuf bourguignon 

2.5 lbs. of stew beef or other tender beef
3 cups good red wine
2 level tablespoons of flour
200 grams of smoked bacon (pork belly)
2 oz. of cognac
0.5 lbs. of button mushrooms
5 tablespoons of cooking oil (olive, canola...)
75 grams of butter
salt pepper
1 large carrot
thyme and rosemary to taste

Cut the beef into 1,5-inch cubes and put them in a mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, 4 or 5 black peppercorns, a carrot cut into disks, the thyme and rosemary, and the cognac and wine. Let all that marinate for at least 4 hours.Then take the pieces of meat out of the marinade and wipe them dry. Pour the marinade through a strainer (into a bowl).

In a thick-bottomed cooking pot, heat up the remaining (uncooked) oil with 25 grams of butter and brown the beef and bacon. Take the meats out of the pot and set them aside. Pour off and discard the cooked butter and oil. Melt 50 grams of fresh butter in the same pot. Add the to make a roux and pour in the strained marinade liquid. Bring it to the boil until it has thickened and put the beef and the bacon back into it. Cover the pot and let it cook for 2.5 hours on low heat. Fifteen minutes before the cooking time is up, wash and slice the mushrooms and add them to the pot. De-grease the the sauce and serve the bourguignon in a hot serving dish.

The recipe above is my best attempt at a translation of the French recipe I base my Bœuf bourguignon on. The original French recipe is below.