Farmhouse-Style Poached Beef and Vegetables

Name: Farmhouse-Style Poached Beef and Vegetables (Pot-au-Feu)
Yield: Makes 12 Servings
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 8 quarts [8 l] beef bone broth or water or a combination, or enough to cover; 6 medium leeks, greens discarded, whites split lengthwise, rinsed, and tied in a bundle with string; coarse salt (to accompany the dish) pepper (to accompany the dish); 1 medium-size onion; mustard (both a Dijon style and a whole grain, if you like, to accompany the dish) cornichons (to accompany the dish); 2 cloves; 4 rounds of beef or veal shank (each about 2 inches [5 cm] thick, about 3 pounds [1.3 kg] total), each tied in 2 directions; 1 large bouquet garni; 1 baguette (if you’re serving the broth first); ½ cup [55 g] finely grated Gruyère (if you’re serving the broth first); 2 ½ cups (1 recipe) Sweet-and-Sour Tomato Sauce; toasted French bread (for serving) (optional); 3 large turnips, peeled, each cut into 6 wedges; 2 ½ pounds [1.1 kg] medium-size carrots, peeled; 1 chuck roast appropriate for pot roasting (4 pounds [1.8 kg]), tied; 12 marrow bones (each about 2 inches [5 cm] long; optional); 3 pounds [1.3 kg] beef short ribs, preferably in a single piece, excess fat trimmed off, tied in 2 directions

Pot-au-Feu

Preparation info

Makes
12
Servings

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Glorious French Food

By James Peterson

Published 2002

About

Ingredients

2 cloves
1 medium-size onion
1 large bouquet garni
4

Europe
France
Main course
Mediterranean

Method

Insert the cloves into the onion and put the onion in a large pot with the bouquet garni. Arrange the meat on top and pour in enough beef broth or water to cover.

Put the pot over medium to high heat. When it reaches a simmer, turn the heat down to maintain it at the barest simmer—the top of the meat should just barely vibrate. Simmer for 4 to 5 hours, until a knife slides easily in and