Beef Bourguignon Soup

Another recipe from Lucinda Scala Quinn of Mad Hungry Fame (you'll be seeing a LOT of her's) which I have made twice now.  Not only was this soup good the night I made it, but real good the next day.  And that was considering I put both the soup and the Herbed Egg Noodles in the same container.  Usually noodles will absorb some of the liquid and get bloated and soggy.  But not these!  I'm also figuring I'd better blog about this one as soup season will be coming to an end (or major slow-down).

Not real pretty, but oh so tasty!

Here is the recipe for the soup:

Lucinda Scala Quinn’s Beef Bourguignon Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 bone-in short ribs (2" thick, 2 lb. total)
• coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 8 oz. whole white button mushrooms, quartered
• 3 carrots, 2 finely chopped and 1 cut into 3/4" cubes
• 3 shallots, minced
• 2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
• 2 strips bacon, diced
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 thyme sprigs
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1 cup dry red wine, such as Burgundy
• 8 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium beef stock
• 2 cups water
• Herbed Egg Noodles (see recipe), for serving

Directions:

      Season ribs with salt and some pepper. Coat with cornstarch. Heat oil in a large heavy pot (preferably enameled cast iron) over medium-high heat. Lightly brown ribs on all sides, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

      Add mushrooms to pot. Cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and add cubed carrot to that bowl to be added later.

      Add shallots, celery, bacon, and chopped carrots to pot. Cook until caramelized, about 6 minutes. Stir in tomato paste.

      Return ribs with plate juices to pot. Add thyme and bay leaf. Raise heat to high. Add wine. Cook, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon, until slightly reduced, about 1 minute. Add stock and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, partially covered, until beef is tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

      Remove ribs. Separate meat from bones; discard. Cut meat into bite-size pieces; return to pot. Add reserved mushroom-carrot mixture. Bring to a simmer; cook until cubed carrots are tender. Season with salt. Ladle soup over bowls of herbed egg noodles.
Servings:  6

The first step has you seasoning then coating the ribs with cornstarch and browning.  This is to build up the flavor of the rib meat.  You'll want them to get a nice brown crust.  Don't worry about them getting tough because they are going to simmer in the sauce for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. 

I nice little tip I learned from Lucinda, is to use tomato paste in a tube.  Ever had a recipe that called for 2 tbsp. of tomato paste?  No matter how small a can you buy, you always have some left over!  Now, I just buy the tube and keep it in the refrigerator.  You'll find it on the same aisle as the paste. 

The recipe prefers Burgundy, but I've just used whatever red wine is in the pantry and it has tasted great!  When the main cooking time is finished, I take out the ribs and let them cool for a couple minutes.  The meat should fall off the bone.  The final step has you returning the meat, mushrooms and carrots to the pot and cooking till the carrot cubes are tender, probably about 10 minutes depending you soft you like them. 

So here's the recipe for the noodles:

Lucinda Scala Quinn’s Herbed Egg Noodles

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. pkg. egg noodles, cooked to package directions and drained
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2-4 tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

            Toss cooked egg noodles, while still hot, with butter and chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Servings:  6

This recipe is obviously simple.  Once they are done, spoon some into your bowl and ladle the soup over them and enjoy.  A nice, crusty loaf of French bread would go great with this soup.  Enjoy!