Red Wine Beef Stew (French-Style)
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This red wine beef stew is slow-braised in a Dutch oven until the beef is completely tender and the wine-enriched broth reduces to a rich sauce. It’s built around a few classic Provençal ingredients — a bundle of rosemary and thyme, fennel alongside the carrots — that lift it a few notches above the standard pot of stew.
Traditionally made on the stovetop in a very large earthenware dish called a daubiere, it’s slow-cooking at its best, rich with tender beef, herbs, and red wine.
The hands-on prep work takes about 25 minutes, and then the oven does the work. While dinner is bubbling away in the oven, all you’ll need to do is slice some crusty French bread and make this radicchio salad.
A Dutch oven is the best slow-cooker!
Along with the pasta pots and cast iron skillets, my enameled cast iron French ovens are my most cherished kitchen tools.
- A good enameled cast iron pot is an investment, but it’s beautiful and will last a long, long time.
- It’s heavy-duty and reliably retains even heat distribution over long, slow cooking times.
- For slow-cooker recipes, a Dutch oven is a true one-pot vessel — sear meats and sauté vegetables on top of the stove, and place in the oven to slow-cook.
Choosing the beef
- When you shop for beef stew, skip the packages labeled “stew meat” — they’re typically a mix of trimmings from different cuts, which means uneven fat content and inconsistent results. Boneless chuck is the right cut. It comes from the shoulder, where well-exercised muscle and good fat marbling combine to give you tender, flavorful meat after a long braise. Look for it labeled as blade roast, chuck shoulder, top chuck, or shoulder clod roast. The butcher counter staff can cut it for you if you’d rather not do it yourself.
Preparing the vegetables
- I cook the vegetables separately from the beef — a technique from restaurant kitchens that keeps their color bright and their texture intact rather than letting them go soft in the braise. I like to use fresh fennel for some of the celery for a Provençal note. If you can’t find it, use 3–4 celery stalks total.
How to slow-cook beef stew
1. Buy a piece of boneless chuck roast. 2. Trim off the excess fat and cut the meat into 3-4-inch chunks.
3. Sear the beef, then cook the shallot in the fat. 4. Add the beef back to the pot with red wine, broth and herbs.
Cook the vegetables separately, then add to the finished stew. 
Stir the vegetables into the slow-cooked beef stew and serve.
Which red wine to use in beef stew
When you slow-cook tough cuts of meat like beef chuck, the acidity of wine eventually helps to break the meat down, making it more tender. Red wine in beef stew also adds depth of flavor — some of the liquid evaporates in the oven, which concentrates the flavors going on in the pot.
So, which red wine should you use? If you’re a regular red wine drinker, a good rule of thumb is to cook with wine that you already love to drink. You don’t need to spend big bucks on a bottle of wine for beef stew. There are lots of affordable, tasty dry red wines that are both delicious to drink and cook with:
- Bordeaux-style Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blends
- California Pinot Noir, Syrah, Zinfandel
- French Cotes du Rhone, Bourgogne (pinot noir), Syrah
- Italian Chianti, Barbera D’Asti, Montepulciano
- South American/Australian Malbec, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon
This stew is delicious as is or served over wide pasta noodles like pappardelle or cheesy soft polenta.
Red Wine Beef Stew (French-Style)
Equipment
Recipe Video
Ingredients
Stew
- 3 pounds (1.35 kg) beef chuck roast
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) kosher salt, or 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
- 3 tablespoons (45 g) olive oil
- 2-3 finely chopped shallots, (1 cup)
- 3 tablespoons (45 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) tomato paste
- 4 whole garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups (375 ml) hearty dry red wine, such as syrah, merlot or Cotes-du-Rhone
- 1-2 cups (250-500 ml) chicken broth, or beef broth
- 2 bay leaves and 4 sprigs each thyme and rosemary, tied into a bundle with string
Vegetables
- 1 pound (450 g) peeled carrots in 2-inch chunks
- 2 chopped leeks
- 2 stalks chopped celery
- 1 fennel bulb sliced into ½-inch wedges, (optional)
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 325 (160C) degrees with the rack in the center.
- Prep the beef: Trim 3 pounds beef chuck roast of excess fat and slice into 3-4 inch chunks. Season evenly on all sides with 2 teaspoons salt.
- Heat 3 tablespoons olive oiln a large Dutch oven or heavy casserole over medium-high heat. Sear the beef in batches until browned on all sides, turning with a pair of tongs. Tip: To get the best sear, try not to crowd the pan. Remove the meat to a platter as you go.
- Lower the heat to medium and add 2-3 finely chopped shallots to the pot. Cook 5 minutes in the pan fat, stirring every now and then, until softened. Return the beef and all the reserved juices that have collected on the plate to the pot. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour over the beef and stir to coat. Add 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 4 whole garlic cloves, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and cook 30 seconds. Pour in 1 ½ cups hearty dry red wine, scraping the pot with a wooden spoon to release the browned bits.
- Bring to a simmer, then add enough broth to just cover the beef. Toss in the herb bundle. Cover the pot with a sheet of parchment or foil, then top with the pot lid.
- Place in the oven to braise for 2 ½-3 hours. The cooking liquid will be slightly reduced and the meat should fall apart when prodded with a fork.
Cook the vegetables
- While the beef is in the oven, put 1 pound peeled carrots in 2-inch chunks, 2 chopped leeks2 stalks chopped celery, and 1 fennel bulb sliced into ½-inch wedges in a large skillet with ¼ cup water, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Place over high heat until the water boils. Lower heat to a simmer. Cover the pan and cook until the vegetables are fork-tender but still colorful, about 10-12 minutes. If there's liquid left in the pan, simmer uncovered until it's mostly evaporated. Remove the vegetables from the heat and set aside.
- To serve: Stir the vegetables into the stew. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper as desired. Pick out and remove the bay leaf and herb bundle stems. Sprinkle with ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley and ladle into bowls.
Karen’s Notes and Tips
- Use a 5-6 quart capacity heavy pot or Dutch oven for the best results.
- Crock Pot option: Brown the beef on the stovetop first, then transfer to the insert. Reduce the liquids — use ¾ cup wine and about 1 cup broth (the Crock Pot lid traps moisture and can dilute flavor if you use the full amount).
- The stew will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. When reheating, add a bit more stock or water to the stew as the sauce will thicken as it cools.
- Freeze up to 2 months — thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- Slower braising option: If you’re flexible on time, set the oven temperature to 275F (140C) and braise for 3 1/2-4 hours. The lower temperature and longer cooking time will give you even more succulent beef.
- The stew will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Reheat gently in a saucepan on the stovetop, adding a bit more broth or water to the stew as the liquid will thicken as it cools.
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.
Hey, I’m Karen
Creator of Familystyle Food
I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.
Leave a comment and star rating
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Hi Karen,
I’m so glad I found your website. I’ve already made a few of your recipes and wow!! My family is already requesting make-again-next-week’s!
This stew recipe looks amazing, and I intend to put it on the menu for next week. I just have a question regarding the wine. I’ve heard that, when cooking with wine, the dish needs to simmer with the lid off until the majority of the alcohol evaporates, so as to allow for depth of flavor without bitterness from alcohol taste; and also, the amount of wine used in the recipe will determine how long to simmer without the lid. You do say to simmer before putting in oven, but I don’t know for how long?
Welcome Toni – I’m glad you’ve been cooking and enjoying my recipes :))
When cooking over high heat with a big splash of wine (in a sauté, for example), wine will only need a minute or two to evaporate. This is a slow-cooked stew using a much larger quantity of wine, and it simmers for 3 hours or more. Once you bring the wine to a simmer in step 5, you can immediately add the broth – no need to cook it down. Even with the lid on, the liquid will reduce down as the steam escapes from the pot, taking the alcohol with it. As I mention in the post, take a sip of the wine you’re using for the stew to be sure it tastes delicious and balanced. It won’t taste bitter at all at the end!
I have made this stew for over 5 years now and it’s still a favorite we come back to every fall/winter season! I made one small change by adding a few shakes of garlic, onion, and smoked paprika powder to the beef before browning. Other than that, it’s just lovely on its own.
Have you ever tried freezing it?
This was fabulous
This is the best stew recipe ever! A lovely winter stable.
This is hands down the best stew I’ve ever made. Followed the recipe to a T except that I don’t have a Dutch oven. I simmered the stew on medium / low for 2.5 hours and it was perfect. Meat was tender, vegetables crisp and colorful, just delicious.
I’m planning to make this after another recipe disappointed. But I have a Crockpot, not a Dutch oven. A DO is expensive and I would like to hear what you think the difference is between making in a crockpot vs. dutch oven.
Karen, that is an excellent question! This stew can be made in a Crock Pot instead of a Dutch oven, but there are a few differences in outcome. 1. Dutch ovens are made from enameled cast iron, which retains heat evenly and more consistently compared to the insert in the Crock Pot, which is typically ceramic or stainless steel. 2. Because of condensation in a Crock Pot, the lid traps all moisture inside, which can dilute flavors. A Dutch oven lid fits tightly but still allows a bit of evaporation, which helps to concentrate the juices (and flavor). To achieve the best results in your Crock Pot, I suggest that you brown the meat on the stovetop before adding to the insert, and reduce the amount of liquid called for – use 3/4 cup wine and just enough broth to cover the meat and vegetables – maybe 1 cup or so. If it helps, I’ve had excellent results using this affordably priced Dutch oven from Lodge: https://amzn.to/4f93ERH
I wonder whether this coud be made with oxtail beef
Hi Walter — Yes, you can use oxtails for this stew. Try to use pieces that are thick and wide (about 2-inches diameter). They may take 3.5-4 hours to become tender.
Wow! Was my husband’s response, and I agree. It was delicious. Other than baking the dish at 325° instead of 350° (I checked the dish at 2 hours and it was done), no other changes were made. I made fresh milled and baked bread to go with it. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Wow, what a treat with fresh bread too!
i’ve been craving this all winter and i finally made it and it didn’t disappoint!!! it was so easy and so delicious, a crowd pleaser!!!!
It looks fantastic with the biscuits!!
I have made this multiple times and it is the best! I am making it again for New Year’s Eve this year, with a side of mashed potatoes. I don’t change a thing- it is perfect.
That sounds so good! Happy New Year Ricky
Absolutely divine flavors! And super easy to make! I follow the recipe as written, except omit the fennel as I typically can’t find it. Serve it over biscuits! It has become our go-to beef stew recipe!
This was so good! The only alteration I made (which maybe I missed something or did something wrong?) was add beef broth to the meat when I pulled it out to thin it a bit as it was pretty thick and I wanted more of a soup. Served it over pasta and was delicious. Will make again, thank you!
Best beef stew I’ve ever had. I followed the recipe exactly and used basic red cooking wine. The only thing I did differently was to cover the Dutch oven for a few minutes after stirring in the vegetables so the flavors could mingle. The veggies retained their beautiful colors and it was so fantastic that I’m making a double batch tonight using a fancier red wine!
My family and I absolutely LOVED this! I followed the directions exactly as written except I omitted the leek and used two large Vidalia onions instead. Dynamite flavor!
I ❤️❤️ this recipe. All other stews just fall flat after making this delicious meal!
So glad to hear that!