Beef Bourguignon is another French classic that is as hard to spell as it is to pronounce… Luckily, with our cheat’s version, it is not at all hard to prepare. If you just allow enough time for it to simmer slowly, you can serve it with flair and declare – Beef Bourguignon is on the table! Remember to open a good red wine – it is this dish’s best friend and will definitely help your tongue over the French hurdles…

Ingredients

Serves 4 – 6 main course portions

2 tablespoons oil for frying

600 g beef fillet/rump/sirloin

salt and pepper

100 g button mushrooms/shiitake

1 onion, finely chopped

50 g smoked bacon/Pancetta

1 teaspoon tomato paste

½ cup red wine (We recommend 2018 Leopard’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon)

1 cup beef stock

2 thyme sprigs

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon flour

1 tablespoon sour cream

chopped parsley

Method

Heat a non-stick pan over a high heat.

Cut the beef into 2 cm x 2 cm dice and season generously.

Seal the meat on one side in 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan. Once brown and caramelised, remove from the pan.

Add the onion along with the bacon to the same pan. Cook for 2 minutes until the onion is translucent.

Add the tomato paste and cook for one minute.

Deglaze with the wine and reduce until nearly evaporated.

Add beef stock and reduce by half. Add the thyme.

Mix a teaspoon softened butter with a teaspoon flour to form a paste.

Mix 2 tablespoons of the hot sauce from the pan with the butter and flour paste. Now mix the runny “paste” back into the sauce and cook through, to thicken.

Once the sauce starts to thicken, return the beef to the pot and allow to cook briefly.

Once the floury taste has left the sauce, remove from the heat and add a tablespoon of butter, sour cream and parsley.

Season to taste and serve with crushed potatoes.

Serve immediately with your choice of two award-winning reds: 2018 Leopard’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon – when you are in the mood for a smooth red or 2018 Culinaria Grand Vin – when you want all the complexity of a Bordeaux-style blend!