Subj:  Flemish Carbonades

From:  NJSurfman

Low-cost, rich tasting Sunday beef dinner.

This turns out a reasonably priced entree worthy of 
serving to company -- even the boss.
The sauce is rich tasting. You can cut the fat by using 
less oil to cook the onions and beef.
The recipe is adapted from one by Escoffier, the famous 
French chef  who lived in the
early part of this century...

FLEMISH BEEF CARBONADES
Two TBL  Canola or other no-flavor veg. oil.
One stick butter.
Half-cup flour.
3 lb. top round London broil or a lean piece of chuck.
1 1/2 pounds chopped onions (about six cups, chopped 
finely, as if you were going to use
on hot dogs.)
24 oz beer, the heartier the flavor the better.
24 oz beef broth, canned is fine. Don't use beef consumme.
1/3 cup sugar.
Herb bunch (2 bay leaves, 1/2 TSP thyme, 5 peppercorns, 
1/4 TSP ground cumin,  1/4
TSP marjoram, about 8 springs of parsley, all tied up 
in chesecloth.) 
Salt, pepper.
You'll need a small sauce pan, two fry pans and an oven-going 
pot.

1/ Make a brown roux with the flour and half the butter 
(Melt butter in sauce pan over
low heat, add the flour and cook, stirring frequently 
over low heat. Stop cooking when it
turns medium brown -- maybe 15 minutes. Be careful not 
to burn it.) Set aside.

2/ Slice the beef in very thin strips across the grain. 
You may want to partially freeze it
first to make it easier to cut.

3/ Melt a quarter-stick of butter in one of the fry 
pans, add the onions, and saute until
well-browned.

4/ Meanwhile, melt the rest of the butter in the other 
pan, add the oil, and saute the beef
strips, being careful not to crowd. You'll have to do 
this in several batches. Season beef
with salt and pepper. Go easy on the salt if you're 
using canned broth. Don't worry if the
onions get done first. Just turn the heat off , you'll 
be using them in a moment.

5/ Remove beef to a bowl and set aside. Scoop out the 
fat from the beef pan, leaving the
charred bits of meat and juices in the pan.

6/ Deglaze the beef pan with the beer, add the broth, 
the roux and the sugar. Bring to a
boil, stirring frequently with a wire whisk.

7/ Boil for about 5 minutes, or until you no longer 
smell the alcohol boiling off the
sauce.

8/ Layer the beef and onions in the oven-going pot. 
Start with beef, then onions, beef,
onions. That's four layers total.

9/ Bury the herb bunch in the beef and onions.

10/ Pour the sauce over the beef and onions. Strain 
it if your roux didn't dissolve all the
way.

11/ Cover and bake in 325-degree oven for 2 1/2 hours.

Serve over bowties, rice, riced potatoes or with mashed 
potatoes. Boiled carrots go well
with this.
Excellent on a damp rainy day.