Slow cooker boeuf bourguignon joint

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This is my slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon recipe with a twist. Instead of cutting the meat into chunks, we're cooking an entire joint of beef in the slow-cooker with bacon, onions, mushrooms and a delicious red wine gravy flavoured with thyme, carrots and celery.

Slices of boeuf bourguignon on a serving dish, surrounded by vegetables, alongside a dish of potatoes and a jug of gravy.

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Boeuf Bourguignon
What you will need
What to do
How to serve slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon
FAQ
Save for later
Related recipes
📋The recipe

Boeuf Bourguignon

Boeuf Bourguignon is a classic French beef stew, that originated in the Bourgogne region of France (or Burgundy as we know it in English). It is traditionally made with beef chunks that are marinated overnight in herbs and red wine and then simmered for a few hours with vegetables until tender.

I've taken the liberty of changing the recipe slightly, to use an entire joint of beef rather than cutting the beef into chunks, and also adapted it to be made in a slow-cooker to save on energy costs.

The best piece of beef to use is either brisket or topside. These cuts of beef benefit from a long, slow cooking time, which gives the fibres and collagen plenty of time to break down and tenderise.

For extra flavour, and to aid in thickening the gravy, I like to coat the meat with seasoned flour and brown it in a frying pan before placing it in the slow cooker. I also add some pieces of crispy fried bacon before adding the wine and vegetables.

Once it's all in the slow-cooker, it's just a matter of waiting a few hours until it is done.

To be honest, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find any difference in taste between my version and the marinated version. And my version is much less work 🙂

Slices of boeuf bourguignon on a plate with vegetables, covered in gravy.

What you will need

Equipment

Of course, you will need a slow cooker.

You will also need a large frying pan for browning the joint of beef.

To blend the gravy, you will need a stick blender (or immersion blender).

The only other items you will need, are a sharp knife and a chopping board.

Ingredients

This recipe will serve 4 to 6 people. You can easily adjust it to serve more by using a larger cut of beef and adding more vegetables.

**You can get full ingredients and complete instructions for making this slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**

Ingredients for slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon.

Beef joint - Any beef joint (apart from fillet which will dry out in the slow-cooker) will be suitable for this dish. I've made it with both brisket and topside, and both turned out beautifully tender.

Shallots - Baby onions are best to use but are sometimes hard to find in the shops. I could only find banana shallots which were a bit big, so I cut them in half. You could also use normal white or yellow onions cut into quarters if you can't find baby onions.

Celery and carrots - these should be cut into large chunks. Once the boeuf bourguignon is cooked I remove most of the onions, carrots and celery to serve as a side dish, but leave a few in the cooking liquid to blend into the gravy.

Mushrooms - I like to use whole button mushrooms, but you could also use white closed-caps or chestnut mushrooms. If the mushrooms are quite large, you should cut them in half.

Bacon - a few rashers of streaky bacon add extra flavour. You could also use bacon lardons.

Seasoned flour - this is plain flour that has been mixed with garlic granules, salt and black pepper. It is used to coat the beef before it is browned, and it not only adds flavour but also helps thicken the gravy. If you don't have garlic granules add 2 or 3 cloves of fresh garlic along with the vegetables.

Stock cube - this is a beef stock cube which should be dissolved in one cup of boiling water. If you have fresh beef stock (or store-bought liquid beef stock) in your refrigerator, by all means, use that.

Red wine - for an authentic boeuf bourguignon you should use a red wine which has been produced in the Bourgogne (Burgundy) region of France, such as Pinot Noir. If it's not available in your area, you can use another medium-bodied red wine such as Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon.

Tomato puree and Worcestershire sauce - both of which help enrich the gravy.

Thyme - a few sprigs of fresh thyme added to the slow-cooker makes a world of difference to the end result. You could also add a sprig of parsley and one or two bay leaves. If you only have dried thyme, you can use that, but be careful not to add too much. Dried herbs are much more pungent than fresh.

You will also need some sunflower oil for browning the beef, and if you need to thicken the gravy, you will need some cornflour (or cornstarch).

What to do

Preparation

Peel the carrots and shallots (or onions). Cut the carrots into one-inch chunks. If your onions are quite large, cut them in half or quarters.
Wash the celery and cut it into one-inch pieces.
Cut the bacon into approximately one-inch pieces.
Mix the garlic granules, salt and pepper into the flour.
Dissolve the stock cube in one cup of boiling water and mix in the tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce.

Brown the beef and bacon

Coat the beef well with the seasoned flour, taking care to cover the entire joint.

A joint of beef being browned in a frying pan.

Heat two tablespoons of sunflower oil in a frying pan and sear the beef on all sides on medium-high heat until it has browned all over.

Transfer the browned meat to the slow-cooker.

Pieces of bacon being browned in a frying pan.

Add the bacon to the same frying pan and stir it over medium heat until browned.

Add it to the beef in the slow-cooker.

Cook the boeuf bourguignon

Meat and vegetables ready to be cooked in a slow-cooker.

Arrange the vegetables around the meat.

Pour over the prepared stock and the red wine, and place the herbs on top.

A slow-cooker containing a cooked dish of boeuf bourguignon.

Cook on low for 5 to 6 hours until the meat is tender.

You can also cook this dish on high for 4 to 5 hours.

Remove the sprigs of thyme (and the bay leaves if you used them).

Make the gravy

Remove the meat to a serving dish, cover lightly with tinfoil and leave to rest.
Remove most of the vegetables to a serving dish and keep warm.
Blend the gravy with a stick blender (or immersion blender) until it is smooth. If you don't have a blender, pour the gravy into a metal sieve and press the vegetables through the sieve with the back of a spoon.
If necessary, thicken the gravy with a tablespoon of cornflour/cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir it into the gravy in the slow-cooker (set on high) until it thickens.

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How to serve slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon

I like to serve thin slices of beef, covered with gravy alongside the vegetables.

In keeping with the French theme I like to serve it with boulangere potatoes, but it's equally good served with good old mashed potatoes, covered in gravy.

You may also enjoy it with these vegetable dishes:

Overhead shot of a plate of sliced beef and vegetables on a table.

FAQ

Can I freeze this dish?

The sliced beef can be covered with gravy (to keep it moist) and frozen for up to 3 months. To use, allow it to defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat it either in the microwave or transfer it to a baking dish and reheat it in a hot oven.
If you have eaten all the meat and only have leftover gravy, this can be frozen in a ziploc bag and then defrosted and reheated either in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove, whenever you need a quick gravy.

What can I do with leftovers?

Cold thinly sliced boeuf bourguignon is perfect for sandwiches.

If you have a lot left over, the beef joint can be cut into chunks and used to make this beef madras curry. Just follow the instructions on the recipe card (from step 4) to make the sauce, and add the cubed meat at step 9, but reduce the cooking time to half an hour. If you prefer, you can replace the coconut milk in the recipe with beef stock.

Save for later

If you would like to make this slow-cooker boeuf bourguignon yourself, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.

Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.

Here are some other slow-cooker beef recipes you may enjoy:

You can find these and other similar recipes on my slow-cooker recipes page.

📋The recipe

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Slow cooker boeuf bourguignon joint

Boeuf Bourguignon