Beef Bourguignon Fondue an Easy Meal

If you watched Julie and Julia, you know about Julie’s catastrophe with Boeuf Bourgignon.  Erase everything you saw about that, because this type of fondue is very easy, and in all reality fool proof.  Bourguignon are meat fondues.

The fondue pot that you use for cooking these meats tapers in towards the center at the top, or it may feature splash guards.  This keeps splattering to a minimum as you cook the meat, plus it helps retain the heat in the pot.  Another important hint is you will want about a 2 quart capacity for meat fondue pots.  Steel, copper or enameled cast iron pots are really the best types.  They maintain their heat and will last for years to come.

Peanut and grape seed  oils may cost more money, but they are the higher quality oils used for cooking the meat.  Other oils to consider are canola or vegetable oil.  A thermometer for deep frying comes in handy for keeping the oil at the right temperature, which is just under 375 degrees.

Choosing you meat is especially important when cooking fondue.  A tender piece of meat, for example a sirloin or tenderloin is ideal for beef cuts.  Aged meat that is free of obvious fat is even better.  Size of cubes should be around an inch.  Make sure that you plan enough for the amount of people you are serving.  An abundance of meat can be made into a stew very easily. It is better to have more than you need, rather than less.

Meat Fondue

Beef sirloin or tenderloin
Preferred oil (enough to fill half of the fondue pot)

Trim fat from the meat and cube into 1-inch pieces.  Heat your oil to 375 degrees in medium-sized heavy pot.  Pour hot oil into fondue pot carefully, to avoid burns from splatters.  Using skewer, spear meat and dip in the hot oil.  Cook until done.  (It should take less than a minute, unless many forks are cooking meat at the same time.)  Carefully remove meat from spear and cool.

Fondue plates can really come in handy with this type of fondue.  They have sections to hold meat and dipping sauces.  They aren’t necessary, but can really be nice.  They come in plastic, metal, pottery, ceramic or china.

Look for my next post where I will offer some sauce recipes to go with Fondue Bourguignon.