Dijon and Cognac Beef Stew

Ingredients

• ¼ lb salt pork, diced
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 3 shallots, chopped
• 2–4 tbsp butter, as needed
• 2 lbs beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 tbsp flour
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup Cognac
• 2 cups beef stock
• ½ cup Dijon mustard
• 4 tbsp Pommery or whole-grain mustard
• 4 large carrots, peeled and sliced into half-moons
• ½ lb mushrooms, quartered
• ¼ cup red wine

Recipe

1. Cook salt pork in a Dutch oven over low heat until fat is rendered. Remove solids. Raise heat and cook onion and shallots until softened but not browned, 10–15 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
2. Add butter to the fat if needed. Dust beef with flour, season with salt and pepper, and brown in batches over medium-high heat until almost crusty on all sides. Transfer to the bowl with onions.
3. Add Cognac to the empty pot and cook, scraping up the browned bits. Add stock, Dijon mustard, and 1 tbsp Pommery mustard; whisk to blend. Return meat and onion mixture to pot. Lower heat, cover partially, and simmer gently until meat is very tender, about 1½ hours.
4. Add carrots and simmer 30 more minutes until tender. Sauté mushrooms in butter in a separate skillet until browned.
5. Stir mushrooms into stew with remaining mustard and red wine. Simmer 5 minutes. Taste, adjust seasoning, and serve hot.