Dutch Oven Beef Burgundy
Cubed beef, onions, and red wine thickened with instant gravy. A camp braise that only needs fifteen minutes of simmer.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 8 oz
- cal / oz
- 65
- protein
- 34 g
- serves
- 7, scales
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 35 min
- total time
- 50 min
- water
- 500 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Nut free
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Round roast | 2 lb | cut into 1-inch cubes at home, packed in a cooler |
|---|---|---|
| Meat tenderizer | to coat | round is lean and tough; this is not optional |
| Instant beef gravy mix | 2 packets | plus the water the packet calls for |
| Onions | 3 medium | sliced |
| Garlic | 1 clove | minced |
| Butter | 4 tbsp | |
| Burgundy or other dry red wine | 1/2 cup | |
| Sour cream | 1/2 pint | cooler item; see variations for a shelf-stable swap |
| Oregano | 1/4 tsp | |
| Salt and pepper | to taste | |
| Rice or egg noodles | for serving |
Method
- Slice the onions and mince the garlic. Cube the beef if you did not do it at home, and dust the cubes with tenderizer.
- Set coals for frying, about 325°F on a 12-inch dutch oven. Melt the butter in the bottom.
- Cook the garlic and onions in the butter until the onions go translucent. Lift them out and set them aside.
- Brown the beef in the buttery drippings, working in batches so the cubes sear instead of steam.
- Return the onions and add the gravy mix with its water, the wine, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Pull coals to drop the heat to a simmer, around 225°F. Cover and hold it there for 15 minutes.
- Off the heat, stir in the sour cream. Do not let it boil after this or it will break.
- Spoon over rice or noodles cooked in a second pot.
Round roast is cheap and lean, which is why the tenderizer and the wine both earn their place. A real burgundy braise runs two hours; fifteen minutes of simmer will not break down connective tissue on its own, so the tenderizer does that work chemically and the small cubes keep the distance heat has to travel short.
The instant gravy is the camp shortcut. It thickens without a roux, without flour dust, and without whisking over uneven coals. Sour cream goes in last and off the heat because the acid and the low fat content will curdle if it sees a boil. If you are more than a day from a cooler, use the powdered version in the variations and nothing about the method changes.
Packing
Cube and tenderize the beef at home and bag it flat; it thaws evenly and there is no cutting board in camp. Slice the onions at home too. Wine goes in a small screw-top bottle, not the whole 750.
Variations
- Swap the sour cream for 3 tbsp of powdered sour cream or full-fat milk powder whisked with a little hot broth. That makes the whole thing cooler-free.
- No wine along? Beef broth with a splash of red wine vinegar gets close.
- Cook it in a deep skillet over a stove instead. Same order, same times.
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/beef_burgundy-1299.asp