Recipe: Beef with Carrots Prepared the Traditional Way

Beef with Carrots Prepared the Traditional Way
(Boeuf aux Carottes l'Ancienne)
Source:Parisian Home Cooking: Conversations, Recipes, and Tips from the Cooks and Food Merchants of Paris by Michael Roberts, 1999, Makes 5 to 6 servings

3 bay leaves
1 bunch fresh parsley
3 sprigs fresh thyme
12 peppercorns
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, preferably canola
2 1/2 pounds boneless chuck roast, cut into 2 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 pound slab bacon, cut into 3/8-inch cubes
3 medium onions, roughly diced (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 tablespoon toasted flour *
1/4 cup brandy
3 cups dry white wine, such as Chardonnay
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1 cup cold water, or to cover
1 1/2 pounds small organic carrots, scrubbed
Freshly ground black pepper

* Astuce: Brown Roux:
To get the special flavor that French stews have, use lightly toasted flour for thickening. Place 1 cup of flour in a shallow baking dish, place in a 375-degree F oven, and cook, stirring every 10 minutes to ensure that all the flour toasts evenly and to break up the chunks that form. The flour is ready when it's a light honey color. Remove from the oven, let cool, and store in an airtight container as you would any flour. The flour will darken threefold when you add butter or oil to it to make a roux. Since toasting reduces the thickening ability of the gluten, increase the amount by about 25 percent in recipes that call for using flour to thicken a liquid.

Tie up the bay leaves, parsley, thyme, and peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth and set aside. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or heavy nonreactive casserole over medium-high heat. Add the beef and bacon, without crowding (add the beef in batches, if necessary), and brown the beef on all sides, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the beef and bacon and set aside. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the pot, add the onions, and cook, stirring, until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Mix in the flour and cook for another minute, stirring. Replace the meat, add the brandy, and cook for a minute or so to burn off the alcohol. Add the wine, salt, and the herb bundle. Add enough of the cold water to barely cover the meat, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1 1/4 hours. Add the carrots and cook until tender, another 25 to 35 minutes, depending on their age and size. Remove the stew from the heat, and remove and discard the herb packet. Taste for salt and pepper and add as needed. Pour the stew into a serving dish and serve.