Bordelaise Sauce

Hello friends

This description of how to make Bordelaise sauce, although not terribly correct as described in large cookbooks written by cooks who should know better, will result in an excellent product and one you will be proud to serve. The making of the sauce is simple and need not be made more complicated.

Are you with me so far? Good. Then let's go.

Begin your Bordelaise sauce by first making a pot of simple brown gravy as described below. Brown gravy is sometimes also called espagnole (espahn-yole), or simply brown sauce.

So let's begin your Bordelaise sauce by first making a brown gravy.

Here's how:

1. Buy some beef soup bones-try to get bones with marrow in the center-and put them in a roasting pan with a little oil. More about the marrow later, but don't worry about it.
2. Chop up a few celery stalks, an onion or two and a couple carrots. Nothing fancy here, just chop up these vegetable in fairly large pieces.
3. Put the roasting pan full of bones and vegetables into a 350 degree oven.
4. Roast the bones and vegetables for a couple hours until they get brown, Now remove the pan from the oven and, If possible, scrape the marrow out of the bones and save the marrow for the Bordelaise sauce. However, this step is not hugely important.
5. Put the bones and vegetables in a large soup pot-now called a stock pot-and cover with plenty of cold water.
6. Put the stock pot over medium heat and cook until the liquid comes close to boiling. But DO NOT let it boil. Turn the heat down to Low and just let it simmer. A stock pot takes time. Slow is best.
Note: The reason for not boiling the water-which is now actually called beef stock-is to keep the stock from becoming cloudy. You see, if you were to decide to make a clear soup or boullion out of this beef stock-instead of gravy-you would not want it to be cloudy.
7. Okay, so simmer your stock for several hours. And while it is simmering, occasionally skim off the fat and scum that rise to the top. As the level of liquid reduces, add a little more water.
8. Now when the stock has cooked slowly for a few hours, strain the stock through a sieve into another large pot, Throw away the bones and the vegetables; you are finished with them.
9. Add some good beef soup base to the stock. Not too much; most beef base is very salty.
10. Add some some powdered garlic, powdered thyme, a couple bay leaves-then finish it off with a good slug of tomato paste or tomato sauce. The tomato will give the gravy the rich brown color we want.
11. Let your stock keep simmering.
12. Next, you will need something to thicken your brown gravy. Roux is best for this step. Roux is merely flour mixed with cooking oil, or even mixed with butter or beef fat.
13. Here's how: Take a sauce pan and mix some flour and oil until it is about as thick as pancake batter. (Don't worry about making too much of this roux; it can be used for many different things over the next few days. For instance, you can use it next morning to make country gravy for your biscuits. Easy, huh?
14. All right. Now, put the sauce pan with oil and flour roux over moderate heat and SLOWLY cook it, stirring occasionally, until it begins to bubble and gives off that nutty aroma we like in a roux. Almost done now!
15. Take your whisk and, while stirring your stock, SLOWLY pour in a small amount of the roux and watch how thick the gravy gets as you beat it with the whisk. Careful here. Not too much roux all at once. There's no trickery involved, no particular skill needed. Your stock is hot, your roux is hot, so the thickening will begin at once. Keep adding more roux and stirring until the gravy is just the thickness you want.

Now, here's how we make the Bordelaise sauce:

1. Remove a quart or so of the brown gravy and put it in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add to this brown gravy a big glass of red wine. It's best to drink a glass of the wine first to make certain of its quality. We want to be prudent here. If in doubt, drink another glass. Hah!
By the way-the leftover brown gravy in the big pot will be terrific on tomorrow's mashed potatoes!
2. Meanwhile, let the Bordelaise continue simmering and reducing while you add some chopped mushrooms. And also, so you won't be considered completely uncivilized, add some more garlic and some chopped parsley. All right?
   Now check for seasoning, perhaps adding some black pepper if you like.
3. You did save your beef marrow didn't you? If so, slice and add it to the Bordelaise now in the sauce pan. The marrow is not totally necessary for authenticity, but it's a certain sign of your high rank among the nobility and will impress the hell out of everybody.

You have done well to complete this sauce. You are now a finished cook and you will be able to cook circles around any others who dare to set foot in your kitchen.

Watch your fires,

Chef Vince (Montana)