Table for One

A Very Good Beef Bourguignon, Made for One

Inspired by Julia Child's classic recipe, columnist Eric Kim is back with a streamlined, soul-soothing beef stew for one, thanks to a few clever shortcuts.

by:
May 22, 2020
Photo by TY MECHAM. PROP STYLIST: MEGHAN HEDGPETH. FOOD STYLIST: ANNA BILLINGSKOG

Table for One is a column by Eric Kim, who loves cooking for himself—and only himself—and seeks to celebrate the beauty of solitude in its many forms.


“As is the case with most famous dishes, there are more ways than one to arrive at a good boeuf bourguignon,” writes Julia Child in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you’ve ever tasted Julia’s famous beef stew in red wine, then you know how good it is. If you’ve ever made Julia’s famous beef stew in red wine, then you know that it’s not exactly a walk in the park.

There’s the initial browning of bacon and beef stew meat (in stages so as not to crowd the pan), then the sautéing of vegetables, the sprinkling of flour, the eight minutes of baking, uncovered, in the oven to then brown the flour and form a crust on the meat and vegetables (don’t forget to turn the beef halfway). Next, there’s the addition of red wine and the aromatics, and of course the two-and-a-half to three hours of baking in a moderate oven. (This doesn’t even include the braised onions and sautéed mushrooms, which are themselves two sub-recipes within the main recipe, and you have to turn to separate pages of the book to cook them.) Finally, Julia asks that you strain the entire stew through a sieve into another saucepan, skim off the fat, and reduce it before saucing the meat and vegetables.

Don’t get me wrong. I am of the mindset that some famous dishes, especially those as famous and as delicious as Julia’s beef bourguignon, are absolutely worth cooking—on the weekend, for instance, when there’s time and space to dive into the project. There’s also great comfort to be found in just letting go sometimes and following a classic recipe to a T, being told what to do from start to finish. But a recipe as involved as this is certainly not for every day, not to mention it can be hard to convince yourself to cook like this when it’s just you.

Over the years, with Julia’s mantra in mind (there are more ways than one to arrive at a good beef bourguignon), I’ve scaled back her beloved recipe to fit my own life, and the very single state in which I exist. Beef bourguignon for one is possible—even more, my version is a little more streamlined. What this means is that I can still partake in the joys of a slow-cooked meal like beef stew, but without the burden of having to follow all those steps, and then finding myself eating it alone for days on end.

Join The Conversation

Top Comment:
“I've done the Judith Jones and Julia versions and skip the mushrooms in favor of more carrots or onion -- what would be another substitute? I'm not allergic to mushrooms, just not a fan. Good to "see" you. ”
— sf-dre
Comment

Not that such a predicament would be the worst thing in the world: Julia Child’s editor, Judith Jones, has a recipe for beef bourguignon in her own book, The Pleasures of Cooking for One, that makes three portions: the first for eating right away, the second for turning into a beef and kidney pie, and the third for saucing a single serving of pasta. If batch cooking is your speed, then you could of course double or triple my recipe below and eat it a couple more times. But if you are, like me, someone who loves eating something new each time you cook, especially now when time is at a premium, then proceed.

The main tweak that helps me achieve an easier, smaller-scaled beef bourguignon is swapping out the tougher stew meat for something a little more luscious and tender, a little more marbled with fat and collagen: short ribs. Boneless if I can find it (which I typically can at Whole Foods, H Mart, or my local butcher). Since I’m only cooking a single portion, I don’t mind treating myself to a nicer cut like this, for one because it gets softer much faster than chuck or round.

I can still partake in the joys of a slow-cooked meal like beef stew, but without the burden of having to follow all those steps, and then finding myself eating it alone for days on end.

The taste is superior, as well: I find that short rib meat, an essential protein in Korean cooking, has a sweet, aromatic flavor that carries the dish and makes it taste special without the need for bacon. Sure, maybe some of that salty smokiness from the pork might be forsaken here, but this recipe calls for plenty of flavorful pantry ingredients (like Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, and bay leaf) that bolster the savory elements of the stew. There’s no need to add flour either because as the fat and collagen from the short ribs render down into the wine, they create a thick, glossy sauce on their own. And anyway, I prefer the simpler, smoother texture of this natural “gravy” to the oftentimes heavy, claggy feeling of flour-thickened sauces.

The cooking vessel is equally important: Rather than a casserole or a cocotte, I use a small stainless-steel saucepan with a lid; the one I have is oven-safe and holds one-and-a-half quarts, which is perfect for this single portion. The point is that with a smaller amount of meat and wine, you need a smaller pot to ensure that the beef is well-covered with the liquid and doesn’t dry out in the oven. What I like, too, about the lid of a saucepan like this is that it’s not as tight-fitting as one you might find on a heavy cast-iron Dutch oven, which means the meat can braise and get tender while allowing for some of the liquid to evaporate, sauce reducing all the while.

Photo by TY MECHAM. PROP STYLIST: MEGHAN HEDGPETH. FOOD STYLIST: ANNA BILLINGSKOG

Since I don’t love the mushy consistency of overcooked carrots in my stews, I take care to sauté them first over high heat, along with the mushrooms. These fried vegetables get added to the pot in the last 30 minutes of cooking, maintaining their shape and texture without watering down the stew, while still lending their own sweetness. Pearl onion fans can add them at this stage, but I prefer to leave them out completely (as I’m not the biggest fan of their texture) and instead use a large shallot and garlic for the dish’s allium notes.

You could serve this beef bourguignon with mashed potatoes if you’d like, or quick-cooking polenta, which I find can be a lot easier to throw together than spuds. White rice? Even better. Or if you want to avoid the extra step altogether (you’ve just made a stew!), crusty bread is great for sopping up that rich gravy.

Finally, for added texture and a pop of brightness, I take a cue from Chef Travis Lett (formerly of Gjelina restaurant) and prepare a crunchy gremolata of toasted panko bread crumbs, raw grated garlic, lemon zest, and chopped fresh parsley. This tangle of flavors, once sprinkled atop the short rib stew just before eating, adds a welcome fresh element that slides this slow-cooked winter stalwart into the realm of sun-lit spring.

What's your favorite way to cook and eat this classic dish? Let us know in the comments.

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • Peter Prus
    Peter Prus
  • FrugalCat
    FrugalCat
  • Lauren Balog
    Lauren Balog
  • Sara Jane Elisabeth
    Sara Jane Elisabeth
  • Brooke.Bender
    Brooke.Bender
Eric Kim was the Table for One columnist at Food52. He is currently working on his first cookbook, KOREAN AMERICAN, to be published by Clarkson Potter in 2022. His favorite writers are William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, and Ernest Hemingway, but his hero is Nigella Lawson. You can find his bylines at The New York Times, where he works now as a writer. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @ericjoonho.

19 Comments

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FrugalCat September 20, 2023
I used baby carrots in this. One of those 187 ml bottles of wine (from the 4 pack) is perfect here.
 
Lauren B. June 25, 2020
I made this. It was amazing. Perfect sunday dinner! Doubled it for two.
 
Eric K. June 25, 2020
Yay!
 
Sara J. May 28, 2020
I like to eat mine in a super flaky pie crust, with a little spicy hollandaise on the side!
 
Eric K. May 29, 2020
Sounds wonderful.
 
Brooke.Bender May 24, 2020
This is amazing- thanks for modifying the recipe for one. I love to cook (and eat well) but living alone I really despise days of eating the same thing. I'm wondering if the Staub mini cast iron braiser would be a good pan to cook this in?
 
Eric K. May 27, 2020
Hi Brooke! It would work, but I've found more success (i.e., more succulence) with a less shallow pot. Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00421AYHW/
or this: https://food52.com/shop/products/3205-food52-x-staub-petite-french-oven-stovetop-rice-cooker-1-5qt
 
SophieL May 23, 2020
Due to pandemic lockdown, I've been dining solo for over eight weeks now. Eric's Table for One column is perfect for me - the recipes are inspiring and I have the time to cook at a leisurely pace to reap big payoffs.
 
Eric K. May 27, 2020
I'm so glad, Sophie.
 
David S. May 22, 2020
It’s so sad that you eat this alone. Invite someone to share. We are not meant to
eat something this fabulous alone
 
Smaug May 23, 2020
The whole point of this column is that cooking for yourself is not only acceptable but can be highly rewarding. I can't speak for Mr. Kim, but in my own experience, two great advantages to cooking solo are that it gives you freedom to try things that you're not at all sure will work, and it allows you to evaluate what you've done objectively, free of the unstinting praise that you'll generally get from guests unless you bollix things completely.
 
Lune May 23, 2020
Smaug is absolutely correct. This is the column I look forward to read every Friday night after work. It is beautifully written and incite me to try something new even if it isn't the specific recipe attached to the story. I certainly don't think eating alone is sad. One of my favorite thought from a movie: “But I’m not lonely, I like to be by myself. I mean, people don’t understand that, you know, they think that you’re a bitch, or that you must certainly be depressed. I mean, say a woman is sitting alone in a bar reading, and a man who comes in, he automatically makes an assumption that’s shes either sitting there waiting to be propositioned, and you know, if she doesn’t want it then there must be something wrong with her, because you know, what woman in her right mind would be content just sitting by herself, you know? But I’m not lonely when I’m sitting in a bar by myself and you know, I’m not even lonely when I’m at home alone. I get lonely in a crowded room, or, or a subway that’s packed with people. You know, all those people, and everyone is stranger.”
HOPE DAVIS, NEXT STOP WONDERLAND (1998)
 
Eric K. May 27, 2020
Thank you so much, Smaug and Lune. And to David for calling this "fabulous" -- if you like, you could certainly multiply the ingredient amounts here to feed more mouths.
 
sf-dre May 22, 2020
This could be a weekend project without taking as much of the weekend. 😁 I've done the Judith Jones and Julia versions and skip the mushrooms in favor of more carrots or onion -- what would be another substitute? I'm not allergic to mushrooms, just not a fan.

Good to "see" you.
 
Eric K. May 27, 2020
Sorry for my late response -- yes, you can 100% skip the mushrooms and replace with more carrots, pearl onions, halved new potatoes even (those would just need to go in with the meat, as they need time to cook through.
 
Smaug May 22, 2020
Eric- I hope all is well with you, haven't heard from you in a while.
 
Eric K. May 27, 2020
Thanks, Smaug. Doing well. I'm no longer a staff editor at Food52, but will be contributing on a monthly basis to this column. You can find my byline at Saveur and Bon Appetit now, mostly (also working on my first cookbook).
Hope you're safe and healthy-
E
 
mcs3000 May 22, 2020
Would be awesome to have Eric part of F52's Insta live rotation.