Beef Bretonne

Submitted by Goodies from Grandm

"This was a recipe my mother used to make for special occasions and around the holidays. I'm not sure where she found this but it was always a favorite and often requested. It is on the order of a stroganoff but has an incredible distinctive taste all its own - which I like to call "come back" flavor. It is great served over broad egg noodles and a nice dinner salad which is sure to impress almost any guest. People think you have been slaving in the kitchen all day but if truth be told, it is relatively easy to make and the beauty of this dish is -- it is made ahead of time and you can actually enjoy your company and not spend all your time, last minute, in the kitchen cooking. I suggest you use and electric skillet/dutch oven if you have one since you have a more even heat control. If not, this still can be done on top of the stove with a little closer monitoring so it doesn't burn. Hope you enjoy as much as we have."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 15mins
• Ingredients: 11
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 3 3 lbs sirloin or 3 lbs beef tenderloin, if preferred
• 4 ounces butter or 4 ounces margarine
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 3 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 1⁄4 cup flour
• 1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1⁄4 teaspoon rosemary
• 1⁄4 teaspoon oregano
• 1 cup Burgundy wine
• 1 cup strong black coffee

directions

1. Trim off all fat from meat and cut into 3/4 inch cubes.
2. Melt butter in deep skillet.
3. Crush garlic and add to melted butter.
4. Brown meat on all sides in garlic butter.
5. Add thinly sliced onions to meat and cook until onions are soft but not brown.
6. Remove meat and onions and blend flour with remaining juices.
7. Add remaining ingredients to flour and juices, blending until sauce is slightly thickened.
8. Return meat and onions to skillet, cover and bring just to a boil.
9. Lower heat and simmer for 1.5 hours or until meat is tender.
10. Serve over cooked broad egg noodles.

Reviews

[mianbao]

I tried this out - I did change some things, but I don't think my changes were so very big. I used a cheaper Spanish red wine, rather than burgundy. I also wanted to scale the recipe, but was afraid to cut back on the amount of sauce and spices. So, I used 1 pound of sirloin, 2 onions and about 3 cups of fresh mushrooms. I left the other amounts as they are given, cutting back just a bit on the butter. I cooked this in a cast iron pot, and even on the lowest heat setting of my range, it did tend to stick, and I needed to stir it from time to time. I think probably, 1 tablespoon less flour, with all the flour added pre-mixed with some butter, as a separate roux near the end of the cooking period, would have made things simpler. As far as flavor, this is nice, but not something I'd call wonderful. I think I would have preferred more seasonings. Overall, though, it's a nice recipe, and it made a good dinner. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us.