This slow cooker beef bourguignon is tender beef chunks, bacon, mushrooms, carrots and pearl onions, all simmered together in a rich red wine broth. A crock pot variation of the classic French dish which is easy to make, and always gets rave reviews.
You can never go wrong with a slow cooker dinner, especially on those days where you know you’ll be extra busy! Some of my favorite slow cooker recipes include crock pot pork roast, crock pot spaghetti and this delicious beef bourguignon.
When I want hearty comfort food without a ton of work, I make slow cooker beef bourguignon. This meal is super flavorful and takes just a few minutes to put together in the morning, then you get to come home to dinner ready to eat!
What is beef bourguignon?
This dish is also called beef Burgundy, and is a French stew that features pieces of beef simmered in a red wine broth. This dish also contains assorted vegetables such as mushrooms and carrots, and typically contains bacon.
How do you make beef bourguignon?
Start by cooking bacon in a pan until it’s crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan, then brown the beef in the remaining bacon fat. Remove the beef from the pan, then add the red wine. Let the red wine simmer until it has reduced by half, then add beef broth and tomato sauce. Whisk in the flour, then place the bacon and beef into the slow cooker. Add the vegetables, garlic, herbs and sauce to the crock pot, then stir to combine. Cover and cook on low until the beef is tender. Sprinkle with parsley, then serve.
Tips for the perfect dish
- I recommend cutting the vegetables into large pieces so they don’t get overly soft during the long cooking time. You can also stir the veggies in halfway through the cook time if you like.
- This dish is typically made with a Burgundy wine such as Merlot, Pinot Noir or Cabernet. Choose a decent quality wine that you would enjoy drinking for best results.
- You can also make this beef stew in the oven instead of the slow cooker. Follow the directions for browning the meat and making the sauce, then put everything in a covered pot and bake at 325 degrees F for four hours.
- Serve your stew with a loaf of bread and a green salad to round out the meal. A side of mashed potatoes is also a great choice.
What cut of meat is best for beef bourguignon?
I recommend using a well marbled cut of meat for this dish such as chuck roast, beef stew meat, or round roast. Anything that’s labeled at your meat counter as pot roast will also work just fine.
Flavor Variations
This dish is delicious as-is, but you can add other ingredients to customize the flavors to your tastes. These are just suggestions and some ingredients may veer from the traditional version of beef bourguignon.
- Protein: I made made this dish with diced chicken thighs with great results. It also works well with cubes of pork shoulder.
- Vegetables: You can add more veggies to the mix such as celery, baby potatoes, parsnips or butternut squash.
- Flavorings: Feel free to stir in a handful of olives, extra herbs, a spoonful of tomato paste, or a dash of Worcestershire or soy sauce for added depth of flavor.
Once you try this traditional stew, you’ll find yourself making it on a regular basis!
More slow cooker favorites
- Crock Pot Little Smokies
- Slow Cooker Pot Roast
- Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
- Mississippi Pot Roast
Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon Video
Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon coarsely chopped
- 3 pounds beef chuck roast cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup red wine such as Pinot Noir, Merlot or Cabernet
- 3 cups beef broth
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce from an 8 ounce can
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 carrots peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 pound cremini mushrooms halved
- 1 cup pearl onions fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
Instructions
- Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook for 4-5 minutes or until crispy.
- Remove the bacon from the pan. Add the beef in a single layer. You may need to work in batches.
- Season the beef with salt and pepper.
- Cook the beef for 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown.
- Remove the meat from the pan.
- Add the red wine to the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes or until it is reduced by half.
- Pour the beef broth and tomato sauce into the pan and stir to combine.
- Whisk in the flour until smooth.
- Place the beef and bacon in a slow cooker. Add the garlic, thyme, bay leaf, carrots, mushrooms and pearl onions. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the beef broth mixture into the slow cooker, then stir everything together.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or until the meat is tender.
- Uncover the slow cooker. Sprinkle the parsley over the top of the stew, then serve.
This was delicious. I made it exactly as written but I prepped everything including the meat and sauce the night before and stored everything (separately) in the fridge overnight. In the morning before work, I dumped everything in the slow cooker. I served it over homemade mashed potatoes. I will definitely be making this again.
Delicious
Can this be cooked on high in the slow cooker? How long on high?
It would be half the amount of time on high!
This might be the most delicious dish I’ve ever made. And it was very easy. I had to restrain myself from licking the bowl clean.
This was the first recipe I’ve tried from dinner at the zoo and I can’t wait to try more.
Hi, This looks delicious! Does it freeze well??? Thank you
Yes it should freeze fine!
Do you drain any of the bacon fat? It doesn’t appear so in your video or directions but I feel like I have SO much fat! Trying this tonight, thanks!
Yes you can drain any excess fat!
can I prep this the night before and just turn on my slow cooker in the morning from being in the fridge.
That should be fine!
The printed recipe sounds yummy. But in your comments section regarding flavor variations, you said you had made this recipe with chicken thighs and that pork shoulder cubes would work also. Without changing anything else? Im very interested in this information. Beef is not our favorite protein, and would love to know if chicken thighs or pork would work. Thanks,
You could substitute chicken broth for beef broth, otherwise it should work out the same!
I came home from work to this amazing smell and meal!! It was a perfect way to end a long day.
I’m addicted to Dinner at the Zoo. Every recipe is delicious. I was a little nervous that the beef would be hard but this came out perfectly! The beef was so tender. I put it over egg noodles. A definite do again. Thank you
Thanks a lot for this amazing and super easy to make beef bourguignon recipe! It’s really tasty and very flavorful! Will surely have this again! Highly recommended!
This was a huge hit with my family, all three teenage boys devoured it!
My goodness this turned out delicious! My family took one bite and said immediately that this was a keeper! Thank you!
I made this last night and it turned out perfectly. And I love that I could use my slow cooker. So easy!
So good! Went well with some potatoes! Made the perfect Sunday dinner!
Oh my deliciousness! I didn’t know beef bourguignon would be this easy to make. Getting the slow cooker out now!
I’ve been wondering what to cook in my slow cooker – now I know!
This dish is so savory! I love making beef bourguignon in a slow cooker. The bacon gives this so much flavor along with the wine!
OH MY GOODNESS! This was very delicious. I made it with mashed potatoes and it was a hit. The beef was so tender and the food was seasoned so well. We had leftovers, so we ate Beef Bourguignon two days in a row. I must say the second day was even better than the first day. HAHA! Thank you for a great recipe!
My husband has asking for beef burguignon for weeks. So happy to find it here and you only posted it 4 days ago. I found Dinner at the Zoo looking for something to do with left over angel hair pasta. Your recipe with garlic and herbs turned out perfectly. Thank you! I’m so impressed looking through your recipes.