Beef Carbonnade

Beef, bacon, and beer make this beef carbonnade incredibly flavorful. Add a generous dose of onions to the mix and you may have yourself a new favorite beef stew recipe!

Why this recipe works

Beef carbonnade is a hearty, flavor-rich beef stew with plenty of onions, bacon, garlic, and seasonings to go around. “Carbonnade” simply means beef stew made with onions and beer.

Don’t be alarmed by the amount of onions called for here – after a couple of hours in the oven, the flavor of the onion is transferred to the meat and gravy, and the onions themselves will almost disintegrate.

Ingredients you will need

Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.

Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions

BEEF – We used two pounds of boneless chuck roast cut into 1-inch cubes for this recipe.

BEER – Belgian ale is the most popular choice for carbonnade, but light or dark beer will also work. If you are worried about the flavor of beer in the end results, don’t worry, it cooks out (same with its alcohol content). However, making the stew with beer infuses richness you wouldn’t experience when using broth or stock. It’s worth every last drop.

ONIONS – As one of the main ingredients in carbonnade, we are not skimping on the amount of onions added. Five cups of thinly sliced onions will transfer loads of flavor to this stew. 

How to Make Beef Carbonnade

These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.

1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Cook the bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving the drippings in the pan. Set bacon aside.
3. Cook beef, salt, and pepper in drippings over medium-high heat for 3 minutes, browning the beef well on all sides.
4. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Remove beef with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onion to the pan, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes.
6. Add the broth, white wine vinegar, sugar, dried thyme, bay leaf, and the beer and bring to a boil.
7. Return bacon and beef to pan.
8. Cover and bake at 325°F for 2 hours or until the beef is tender. Discard the bay leaf and serve over noodles.

Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips

Serving Suggestions

Serve beef carbonnade over a bed of egg noodles or mashed potatoes for a complete meal. Be generous with your scoops of leftover pan gravy on top and optionally pair with a side of crusty bread to mop it all up.

More Stew Recipes

• Irish Stew
• Hamburger Stew
• Homemade Goulash
• Beef Stew with Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

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Beef Carbonnade

All good things take time, and this carbonnade is no exception. The initial prep is simple enough, but it will need around two hours to fully develop in the oven. The result will be well worth the wait.

5 from 5 votes

IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!

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Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, European

Servings: 6 servings

2 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Calories: 621

Author: Amanda Davis

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 slices bacon finely diced
• ▢ 2 pounds boneless chuck roast cut into 1 inch cubes
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 1 clove garlic minced
• ▢ 5 cups thinly sliced onion
• ▢ 3 Tablespoons all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 cup beef broth
• ▢ 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ 1 bay leaf
• ▢ 12 ounces beer 1 can. Light or dark
• ▢ 6 cups cooked egg noodles

Things You’ll Need

• ▢
  Dutch oven
• ▢
  Slotted spoon

Before You Begin

• Belgian ale is the most popular choice for carbonnade, but regular light or dark beer will also work. If you are worried about the flavor of beer in the end results, don’t worry, it cooks out (same with its alcohol content). However, making the stew with beer infuses richness you wouldn’t experience when using broth or stock. It’s worth every last drop.
• Don’t be alarmed by the amount of onions called for here – after a couple of hours in the oven, the flavor of the onion is transferred to the meat and gravy, and the onions themselves will almost disintegrate.

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325F.
• Cook the bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving the drippings in the pan. Set bacon aside.
• Cook beef, salt, and pepper in drippings over medium-high heat for 3 minutes, browning the beef well on all sides.
• Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Remove beef with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onion to the pan, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes.
• Add the broth, white wine vinegar, sugar, dried thyme, bay leaf, and the beer and bring to a boil. Return bacon and beef to pan.
• Cover and bake at 325°F for 2 hours or until the beef is tender. Discard the bay leaf and serve over noodles.

Expert Tips & FAQs

• Leftovers – store in an air-tight container kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. 
• Make Ahead – store in an air-tight container kept in the refrigerator and reheat over medium heat on the stovetop.
• Freezing – transfer the cooked and cooled stew to an air-tight container or large ziptop bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and reheat on the stovetop until warmed through.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 621cal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 156mg | Sodium: 530mg | Potassium: 819mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 64IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 85mg | Iron: 5mg

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This post originally appeared here on December 14th, 2010 and has since been updated with new photos and expert tips.