Beef Bourginon

I tried a new recipe last night. Steve stumbled across it. We were lured by the red wine in it. I used to make beef stew with plenty of veggies using wine. So, this recipe. First, I had to cut up the sirloin steak into 2" pieces. Then I had to slice up some bacon. To cook. I threw in onions and mushrooms (sliced) into butter and fried them a little and set them aside. Then I added the bacon to the same pot. Once you pull the crispy pieces out, you brown the meat. The recipe didn't specify whether to set the meat aside while adding flour to thicken the sauce. I did that cause I wanted it to be nicely browned all over. Then I added the meat back in and hit it with red wine, water, tomato paste, thyme and a little s&p. After an hour or so, you add the mushroom & onion mixture back into the stew. I forgot to re-add the crisped bacon bits so it wasn't exactly as the recipe called for. Really, the recipe wasn't very good. I was skeptical of the dish because of it. And it made one critical error. Tomato paste was listed among the ingredients, yet when you read the directions - there was no mention of it. Fortuately, it wasn't too hard to figure out what to do. The recipe suggested serving the dish with rice or noodles. I decided to make mashed potatoes. I used butter, half & half and cream cheese.

The verdict. We both loved it. Things always have a bit of a sophisticated flavor when using wine or other alcohol. Even beer, I think. The mashed potatoes were a little on the dry side but because the gravy was so plentiful and delicious, it wasn't a big deal. I also used white potatoes to make them cause they were around. I don't think it makes the best mashing potato. Next time I'm gonna use the usual russet potato and regular stew meat instead of sirloin. I use stew meat to make goulash and it tastes even better in my opinion. It also cuts costs. We have some leftover and we're going to have it as an appetizer before dinner tonight. Alrighty, I hope you guys have a good day and Eat Something Good!