Beef Bourguignon Pitta Parcels

Beef Bourguignon Pitta Parcels

There is no heartier, more warming or more comforting a dish than this (unless you’ve packed it into pastry!) If you’re willing to part with half a bottle of red wine (at least) then you’ll not be able to get this dish wrong.  The cash you save with the cheap cut of meat can be spent on the wine. For the beef use the best quality brisket you can find as it’s one of the cheaper cuts available yet full of flavour. The better the quality the better the flavour. Think rich, silky gravy with chunks of meat that fall apart plus whole shallots and chestnut mushrooms. It’s the dream meal.

Feeds - 4-6

Preparation Time – 10 minutes

Cooking Time – 2-5hrs

Ingredients –

650g Brisket - Roughly chopped into generous bite sized chunks with a thin layer of fat left on each

2 Tbsp plain flour

Generous sprinkle of sea salt and black and white pepper

Generous glug of rapeseed oil

10-15 Baby shallots – Peeled and left whole

1 Tbsp English mustard

4 Cloves of garlic - Crushed and roughly chopped

½ Bottle of red wine

1 Pint beef stock

2 Bay leaves

12 Chestnut mushrooms – Left whole

6 Large spring onions – Ends chopped off and left whole

Handful of parsley – Roughly chopped

Pack of pitta bread- Cut in half

Pot of Crème fraîche

Instructions –

Start by chopping up the brisket and covering the meat with flour and seasoning until all sides of the meat are well coated. Add to an ovenproof dish with a glug of rapeseed oil and the shallots. Heat over a medium heat turning until all sides of the meat are well browned.

Stir in the Dijon mustard followed by the garlic and cook for another minute or so.

Pour in the red wine and with a spatula scrape the bottom of the pan until all the hardened flour disappears and starts to thicken the sauce.

Now pour in the beef stock, add in the bay leaves, mushrooms and spring onions and cover with either a lid or foil before transferring to a preheated oven and cook at 180 degrees Celsius for a minimum of 2 hours. I find that around the 3 or 4 hour mark makes for the perfect bourguignon. Be sure you keep an eye on it and have a taste every hour or so.

If you’re cooking it for longer you may need to add a glug of water and if you’re wanting to leave it in there to slow cook for 4-5 hrs then cook on 160 degree Celsius.

When you’re five minutes from serving, warm your pitta bread in the oven for 2-3 minutes or until they just start to turn crisp and golden, chop your parsley and have the crème fraîche at the ready.

Take one large serving of beef bourguignon and spoon it into your half pitta, followed by a dollop of crème fraîche and a sprinkle of parsley and you’re good to go…

Tip- If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, try adding tin tomatoes and basil taking this from bourguignon to Bolognese.