Beef Daube Provençal is basically a fancy way of saying a rustic beef stew served over noodles. The above shot is shown served with the Gorgonzola Asparagus Slice (recipe here) – please see note at the bottom of the recipe. It’s one of the more complicated recipes I’ve chosen to share, but the flavours are indescribably yummy!

2 1/2 lbs beef chuck, sliced thin, then into cube sized pieces and patted dry with paper towels
2 to 2 1/2 lbs beef short ribs
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
2 bay leaves
4 whole cloves
1/2 tsp cracked black peppercorns
1 750 mL bottle Shiraz, or any medium (not too sweet/not too dry) red wine
4 slices thick cut pepper bacon
Kosher salt
2 tbsp tomato paste

The day before:
In large bowl with a tight fitting lid, combine all ingredients except bacon, salt, and tomato paste. Toss to combine, then cover and refrigerate overnight or for up to 2 days.

The day of:

Drain, reserving vegetables, meat and liquid separately.

Preheat oven to 300F.

In medium skillet, cook pepper bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Drain thoroughly, crumble and reserve. Remove all but 2 tbsp of fat in the pan.

Reduce heat to medium. Remove whole cloves from reserved vegetables, discard, and add vegetables to pan and cook, stirring until softened, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a 5 quart baking dish. Increase heat to medium-high and brown meat in batches on both sides, about 5 minutes per batch.

As each batch is completed, transfer meat to the baking dish. Sprinkle bacon crumbles and salt over each layer as completed. Once you’ve finished with the meat, add tomato paste and reserved liquid to skillet and heat, just to the boiling point, scraping to release any fond (fond is French for “base” and commonly refers to the browned bits and caramelized drippings of meat and vegetables that are stuck to the bottom of a pan after sautéing or roasting) which have adhered to the pan. Pour over the contents of the baking dish. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until tender.

Remove bay leaves and discard. Serve over hot noodles.

Serves 8, quite generously.

N.B.: The photograph shows it with the Gorgonzola Asparagus Bake, which is a meal in its own right. If you choose to serve these two together, it can easily serve 12-16 individuals, with some leftovers remaining!