Pot Au-Feu

Pot au-Feu, which translates to "pot on the fire" or "pot on the stove" in French, is a classic dish deeply rooted in French culinary history.

Its origins trace back centuries, making it a staple of French cuisine and a symbol of rustic, home-cooked comfort food.

This version includes tender beef short ribs, simmered to perfection alongside hearty vegetables in a broth that's packed with flavor.

This recipe is usually meant to feed 12+ people, so scaling it down required time and patience until I got it right.

Do not be intimidated by the amount of time required to make this recipe, as the vast majority of it does not require any work on your part.

Pot Au-Feu, French comfort food, Slow cooking

Dinner, Beef

French

Yield: 2

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Pot Au-Feu

Level: Intermediate

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Ingredients

For Beef and Soup Stock:

• 2 pounds beef short ribs
• 2 4-inch-long beef marrow bones
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf, parsley)
• 1 small onion, unpeeled and halved
• 1 whole clove
• ¼ teaspoon peppercorns
• 1 celery stalk, cut into 1-inch pieces

For Vegetables:

• 2 carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 leek, white and green parts, halved lengthwise and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 4 small potatoes, quartered

The Extras:

• ¼ of a baguette, sliced into ¼-inch pieces (about 6 pieces total)
• Malden salt, for garnish
• Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
• Creamed horseradish

Preparation

Boil Beef and Bones:

1. Wrap marrowbones in cheesecloth and tightly tie with twine. Tie the short ribs with kitchen twine.
2. Add marrowbones to a medium Dutch oven, then top with short ribs.
3. Add enough cold water to cover both completely. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Place the Dutch oven on medium heat, uncovered. Bring to a boil VERY slowly. Skim, as needed, during the slow boiling process until there is only a scant amount of foam rising to the top. What little foam there will be left should be almost perfectly clear. This should take about 20 minutes.
4. Stick clove into one half of the unpeeled onion and add to the pot, along with peppercorns, bouquet garni, and celery. Simmer very gently and skim occasionally for about 2 ½ hours. If necessary, add more water so that meats and vegetables are always fully covered.
5. Transfer the short ribs and marrowbones to a cutting board. Tent with foil.

Cook Vegetables:

1. Skim excess fat from the broth using a slotted spoon and then strain broth through a fine mesh strainer, reserving the liquid.
2. Return broth to the Dutch oven and bring back to a gentle simmer on medium heat. Add potatoes. Cook for about 10 minutes and then add carrots and leeks and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

Prepare Toasts with Marrow:

1. While vegetables are cooking, discard the cheesecloth from the marrowbones, extract the marrow using the end of a spoon, and spread on toasted baguette slices.

Assemble and Serve:

1. Remove twine from ribs, thinly slice each against the grain, and then divide amongst two shallow bowls.
2. Remove potatoes, carrots, and leeks from the broth and divide amongst the two bowls. Ladle some broth over the short ribs and vegetables. Sprinkle parsley and Malden salt over.
3. Serve with toasted baguette with marrow spread, creamed horseradish, and leftover broth.

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