Braised Beef Chuck with French Onion Gravy
This recipe takes all the best parts of France's most famous entrée, transforming it into a rich sauce to envelop the tender beef. The beauty of this dish is that we braise a piece of chuck whole, meaning it cooks evenly and is impressive to pull apart at the table. It's a true one-pot-wonder where the onions are caramelised before the beef is braised slowly for hours with stock, thyme and verjus. The result is a deeply savoury braise made to be served with buttery mash.
Ingredients 13
2 kg beef chuck steak, whole piece
salt, for seasoning
pepper, for seasoning
120 ml olive oil
1 kg brown onions, sliced
300 ml verjus
1⁄4 bunch rosemary
1⁄2 bunch thyme
4 bay leaves
2.2 l beef stock
120 ml soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, peeled
60 g butter
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Method 6
Season the piece of all over with salt and pepper.
Warm the in a large, cast-iron lidded casserole pot to a medium-high heat. Sear the in the pot, frequently turning until it is well caramelised all over. Once browned, remove and set aside.
Add half the sliced to the pot and stir for a few minutes or until translucent. Add the to deglaze, making sure to scrape up any caramelisation from the base of the pan.
Add the to the with the , , and , then stir to ensure the beef is submerged (if it is not submerged you can either add some more liquid or add a small plate on top of the meat to push it underneath the liquid). Bring to a gentle simmer and cover with a lid, then turn the stove down to as low as possible and cook for four hours (or place in a preheated moderate oven for four hours). The beef should be tender and just falling apart.
Strain the braising liquid into a medium saucepan (discard the onion and herbs), and then bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the remaining and the and cook until the liquid has reduced by half. This should take about thirty minutes. Once reduced, whisk in the until it has dissolved, add the and season with salt and pepper to taste.
To serve, divide the chuck into serving pieces, and generously spoon over the gravy. Serve with buttery mash.
Meatsmith's tips
The leftovers make a wonderful base for a pot pie, too.
If using this recipe as the filling for a pie, remove the beef and add flour to thicken the sauce, whisking it through until combined. Pull the beef apart and stir through.
