Italian Beef Bourguignon: A Quick, Easy Recipe That’s Ready in Half the Time!

Every weekend, you dream of spending more time in the kitchen, experimenting with new recipes. But between running errands, doing laundry, unexpected outings, and well-deserved naps, finding time can be a real challenge. By Sunday evening, everything is done: the house is clean, you’re well-rested, but alas, you end up eating a frozen meal. You promise yourself: “next weekend, I’ll definitely cook!” Well, here’s an Italian recipe from @charlene_et_francesca that’s worth trying. This Italian take on beef bourguignon marries the comfort of traditional recipes with our busy schedules.

In Italy, this dish is known as “lo spezzatino.” This quick version of beef bourguignon uses almost the same ingredients as its French counterpart: carrots, onions, garlic, red wine. However, Italians also add potatoes and tomato paste. Another major difference is the cooking time! Expect to spend 2 hours on lo spezzatino, as opposed to 3.5 to 5 hours for beef bourguignon. Why? Simply because the Italian version contains much less red wine. The sauce is less acidic and less liquid, so it needs less simmering time. For a delightful and relaxing Sunday, the spezzatino is the dish to try.

The spezzatino is a dish made with beef, potatoes, carrots, onions, and celery. If you want to include all the elements of beef bourguignon, you can also add mushrooms. For 4 servings, you will need the following amounts:

• 800 g of beef (chuck, brisket or shank)
• 4 potatoes
• 2 carrots
• 1 stalk of celery
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
• 1 glass of red wine
• About 500 ml of beef broth (homemade or rehydrated cubes)
• A few leaves of bay and rosemary

1. Cut the beef into pieces and dust them with flour. Then brown the pieces in a pot with some olive oil over high heat for a few minutes. Set the meat aside afterward.

2. Finely chop the celery, carrots, and onion, and sauté them in the pot with olive oil. Add the tomato paste, meat, and herbs.

3. Next, pour in the beef broth and let it simmer covered for 1.5 hours on medium heat.

4. Add the roughly chopped potatoes and continue cooking for another half hour covered, still on medium heat. This prevents them from breaking apart in the dish.

You don’t even need to prepare a separate starch to go with it: the flavorful potatoes are there to fill you up. You’ll find that just a few bites will comfort you with this stewed dish. And this pleasure, a reheated frozen meal could never provide!