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Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon has crazy tender melt-in-your-mouth beef, and hearty veggies slow-cooked to perfection in a rich sauce. This meal is comforting and perfect for the cold months ahead!
This rich and hearty meal is warm and satisfying this winter season. If you love a good stew, try this Tuscan Vegetables Chicken Stew, Skillet Pork Cacciatore or Beef Stew with Bacon.
Beef Bourguignon
This is THE BEST BEEF STEW I HAVE EVER HAD! If you guys are looking for a comforting, hearty and blow you away with flavor beef stew, this is your recipe. Ok, I am getting a little ahead of myself because I am so excited about this beef stew.
Who gets excited about a beef stew? Apparently, this girl. This has the most crazy tender beef with hearty vegetables and the absolutely best rich and delicious sauce! I am a total beef stew lover, especially when it cools down. It took me a couple of recipes to get it right.
These are my requirements for the perfect beef stew:
- Tender melt-in-your-mouth beef
- A thick and rich sauce
- Big hearty pieces of vegetables, preferably carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms.
This stew had all of that and more and my family couldn’t get enough of it!
What is Bourguignon?
The word bourguignon comes from a dish that is French and is called Buruandy in English. Bourguignon is similar to a beef stew but has a few variations of ingredients and a much deeper flavoring. A classic bourguignon has the presence of red wine in the recipe, which does cook out and is safe for kids to enjoy this bourguignon recipe. This bourguignon recipe is thick and hearty with loads of flavor!
What You Need To Make Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
A few extra steps are involved in making this stew, but I promise it is worth it. Once you cook the bacon and pan-sear the meat, you throw it all into the crockpot and let it do its thing. This meal is truly the best-flavored stew that I have ever had. I know that your family will love slow-cooker beef bourguignon just as much as we did!
- Bacon: Cook it up and chop it for the recipe.
- Beef Chuck: Boneless beef chuck cooks up to be so tender and delicious.
- Red Cooking Wine: This will cook out slowly and is added for flavoring.
- Chicken broth: The chicken broth is added for flavor and helps to cook the meat and veggies.
- Tomato sauce: Ths is flavorful and soaks in the meat and vegetables.
- Soy sauce: The soy sauce has a rich and slightly sweet flavoring.
- Flour: You need flour to make this soup thick. You can use cornstarch instead if you are gluten-free.
- Garlic Cloves: Chop these up and add them for a pungent and a little spice flavoring.
- Thyme: Thyme brings an earthy flavor.
- Carrots: Slice these up into thicker pieces so that you get a taste with every bite!
- Baby Potatoes: Wash and prep your potatoes before adding them to your crockpot.
- Mushrooms: I love adding mushrooms to any slow-cooker meal!
- Parsley: This acts as a garnish and brings some delicious flavor and color to the mix.
How to Make Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
This stew starts off with cooking some bacon. But THEN you pan sear the meat in the bacon drippings. Pan searing is just that extra step to make the edges crisp and the inside tender. Plus it just seals in the flavor! Most good beef stews do have red wine in them. This really brings out the deep and rich flavor in the sauce. But rest assured, the alcohol does get cooked out. But I promise it is necessary in really bringing out this amazing flavor in the stew!
- Cook the meats: In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Put bacon in the slow cooker. Salt and pepper the beef and add to the skillet, and sear on each side for 2-3 minutes. Transfer beef to the slow cooker.
- Whisk together sauces: Add the red wine to the skillet scraping down the brown bits on the side. Allow it to simmer and reduce and slowly add chicken broth, tomato sauce, and soy sauce. Slowly whisk in the flour. Add then add the sauce to the slow cooker.
- Add in remaining ingredients: Add garlic, thyme, carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms to the slow cooker. Give it a good stir and then cook on low until beef is tender for 8-10 hours or high for 6-Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with mashed potatoes if desired.
Variations On Making Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
This beef bourguignon is known to be decadent and one of the most flavorful stews. It is thick and hearty with rich flavors that continue to grow while cooking. Each ingredient is a key role in making this slow cooker beef bourguignon recipe the BEST. Make this ahead of time and have all the aroma lofting about in your home. Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon is a MUST make this winter season. It is comforting and warms you up on those cold nights.
Enjoy these tips for making this slow cooker beef bourguignon recipe even better!
- Cooking bacon: make sure to not over cook the bacon. The slow cooker will cook it a little more once it is added in.
- Brown the beef chuck: this will help ensure a crisp outer layer. This is a great way for the meat to cook perfectly in the soup.
- Red wine: leaving this out will be okay although it will leave out the most flavor and richness of this soup. I am not a wine drinker but this is a MUST for this to be cooked properly and to the fullest. The wine does cook out and will be safe for kids to eat.
- Mushrooms: I prefer crimini mushrooms. They have more flavor to them compared to the white button. Slicing or cutting in half is best.
- Onions: fresh onions are best. If you need to purchase frozen I recommend pearl onions, which are already pealed and have the most flavor.
- Chicken broth: beef broth will also work instead if you prefer.
- Garlic: if you don’t have garlic on hand, substitute the garlic for 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Bay leaves: add in bay leaves for more flavoring and intensity with this soup.
Frequently Asked Questions For Beef Bourguignon
Knowing how to make this slow cooker beef bourguignon even better is just what you need to make this the BEST EVER! I love the flavors that blend together and how well it cooks in the slow cooker. Impress your friends and family with this beautiful looking and tasting beef bourguignon recipe. It is one of a kind and tastes AMAZING with SO much flavor!
Here are a few frequently asked questions that will help you when making this beef bourguignon recipe.
- Can you make this on the stove or in the oven? Yes, this is made a few different ways. Try my BEST EVER Beef Bourguignon for a stove and oven recipe.
- What is the best meat to use for beef bourguignon? Beef stew meat is easiest or chuck is great if you cut it up. Brisket is also another great type of meat to use for beef bourguignon.
- Which red wine is best for beef bourguignon? I am not a wine drinker but I prefer a dark burgundy wine. Pinot Noir or Chianti are also great options. The wine does get cooked out and is safe for families to enjoy. I recommend if you drink the red wine then that is the type to add in the beef bourguignon.
- What is beef bourguignon traditionally served with? To make this a complete meal, add potatoes, noodles or even rice and a side salad. For a bread a hard baguette or dinner roll works well.
Storing Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
This tried and true slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon is so simple to make and has loads of flavor! This is even better made ahead of time or over the stove top. You can’t go wrong with this simple to make slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon.
- Making slow cooker beef bourguignon ahead of time: the great thing about making this beef bourguignon ahead of time gives the soup more flavoring the longer it sits. This does great made the night before and stored in the refrigerator. It will last in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. When ready to reheat add it to the slow cooker or stove top to warm through.
- Can you freeze slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon? Yes, you can! I like to freeze it in freezer bags or a sealing bag that locks in all the flavors. I freeze them laying down and take them out the night before I am wanting to serve it. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator or you can defrost in the microwave if needed on low heat to warm through, stirring occasionally. It will freeze up to 3 months.
- Reheating slow cooker Beef Bourguignon: simply place the beef bourguignon in a slow cooker and reheat on low setting for 4 hours or until warmed through.
More Delicious Slow Cooker Beef Recipes
- Slow Cooker Beef Tips
- Best Ever Slow Cooker Beef Stew
- Barbacoa Beef
- Korean Beef
- Slow Cooker Beef and Broccoli
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Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
Equipment
- Want to make this even easier? Here are a few products that I LOVE:
- Staub Cast Iron Skillet
- Instant Pot
- The Recipe Critic Whisk
Ingredients
- 5 slices bacon finely chopped
- 3 pounds boneless beef chuck cut to 1 inch cubes
- 1 cup red cooking wine
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup flour
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 2 Tablespoons thyme finely chopped
- 5 medium Carrots sliced
- 1 pound baby potatoes I used tri color
- 8 ounces fresh mushrooms sliced
- fresh chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet cook bacon over medium high heat until crisp. Put bacon in slow cooker. Salt and pepper the beef and add to the skillet and sear on each side for 2-3 minutes. Transfer beef to the slow cooker.
- Add the red wine to the skillet scraping down the brown bits on the side. Allow it to simmer and reduce and slowly add chicken broth, and tomato sauce, and soy sauce. Slowly whisk in the flour. Add the sauce to the slow cooker.
- Add garlic, thyme, carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms to the slow cooker. Give it a good stir and cook on low until beef is tender for 8-10 hours or high for 6-Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with mashed potatoes if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Soooo good. For the carrot portion I did half carrots half parsnips. And added green beans. The flavour is amazing. Will definitely do again!
This dish is delicious prepared exactly to the recipe. It has a rich flavor, and looks beautiful too.
I did it 6 hours on high in my slow cooker.
Browning the meat in batches is key. I seasoned and floured the 1 inch cubes of chuck, and that flour was enough to thicken the gravy.
Fabulous dish and recipe!!
Would sherry work instead of wine?
Yes, that will work well too!
This was great! I will make it again.
This is the best stew recipe! My entire family loved it and will be made many more times😊
Absolutely wonderful! My hubby said it was the best thing I’ve ever made and I cook ALOT! He’s making it again right now as I’m writing this. A pretty cool trick I learned is that if anybody wanted to do a “low carb” version, you can add whole radishes instead of baby potatoes and they come out soft and potato-like. Also, I make this in my Le Creuset dutch oven and it comes out perfect! Thanks so much!!
This recipe is out of the world amazing !!!!!!! Followed exactly as written and it came out perfect ! Thank you !
This was delicious! Made exactly as written. Flavor was amazing. It did take about 7 1/2 hours on low to have the meat melt in your mouth. I would add more carrots next time though, didn’t seem like enough. And it really does only make 6 servings.
This is delicious 😋. I make this recipe at least once a month. Thank you for posting!
Omg….. THANK YOU! This is so delish! I have cooked this for me and my fiancé several times now and we both drool over this dish.
The leftovers would last days for most but that doesn’t happen with this dish. My fiancé gobbles it up real fast (and he’s picky about eating leftovers) He said this one his most favorite meals I make now.
We eat ours over jasmine rice and I double up just a bit on the broth of the dish because just the broth alone is good over rice.
TO SPEED UP THE PREP TIME: I figured out that you can use scoops of leftover bacon grease instead of going through the process of chopping up bacon into tiny pieces each time mainly for the purpose of getting the bacon grease to cook the meat in. (this part was the part I dreaded each time lol) to clarify, when I cook bacon, I always put leftover bacon grease in a mason jar and throw it in the refrigerator to cook with if I ever need to. I tried this the second time I ever made this recipe because I just got done shopping and realized I forgot the darn bacon and I did not feel like going back so I thought “eh what the heck, it shouldn’t make the dish taste that much different..” and it didn’t make one bit of a difference. While eating it the first time, the bacon was so tiny that you didn’t even notice the dish had bacon pieces in it. My fiancé loves bacon and he didn’t seem to mind the little change up I made at all so I always go with leftover bacon grease now instead of using bacon.
AFTER EATING: I leave all leftovers in the crockpot and throw it in the refrigerator. That way, when we go to eat leftovers, I just plug it back in, turn up the heat and let it heat back up (takes 30 mins or so) and it tastes just as good and fresh as the first night.
ALSO, FOR THE WINE: I use “Sutter Home – Cabernet Sauvignon”
I figured I would mention this because I’m not a big wine drinker so finding a wine the first time was tricky (I had to ask the liquor store clerk to help me lol) I hope this will help anyone else out there that was completely lost like I was.
I made this recipe the other night & it was absolutely delish. The meat was cooked perfectly & the vegetables were cooked but not mushy. I’ll make this again for sure.
I see that onions are mentioned in your hints but I don not see them in the recipe?? Do we use onions? I bought small, fresh pearl onions.
The onions are optional. Pearl onions will taste great in the slow cooker. Let me know how you like it!
Cooked up this recipe tonight, and it did not disappoint! It was delicious. Had a wonderful full flavor. I cooked it on high, and it took 5 1/2 hours to cook. The beef was nice and tender and the vegetables were perfect. I served it with mashed potatoes and a side salad, just like recommended.
My 23 year old granddaughter gave it 5 stars. My boyfriend said it was the best he ever had! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m planning to make this tomorrow night. I noticed in the recipe, the amount for onions is not listed. However, it is mentioned in the write up to use fresh onions. How much do we need? Are they diced, sliced? Thank you. The recipe looks amazing!
The onions are optional. The onions are just an extra ideas that you are welcome to add into the slow cooker. I would recommend slicing them but even halving them is a great flavor to this bourguignon.
If I double this with more meat should I double the wine and broth?
Yes, that is best! That way there is enough liquid over top of the meat and other ingredients.
This is a definite make again! So flavorful and simple. It takes a little prep time but it’s worth it in the end.