Boeuf à la gardiane is the signature stew of the Camargue, the wild marshland at the mouth of the Rhône where cowboys known as gardians tend herds of black bulls and ride white horses. Traditionally, the beef simmers slowly in red wine until it’s fork-tender and the sauce turns glossy and deeply savory, perfumed with orange and studded with briny olives.
Our version brings the original 6 to 7 pounds of boneless chuck roast down to a more manageable 4 pounds, while keeping the supporting cast close to full strength. Carrots add earthy sweetness, red bell pepper brings a mellow, fruity note, and chopped Kalamata olives lend their salty, wine-dark richness. Anchovy fillets melt into the beef as it cooks, quietly building a savory depth that no one will identify as fish.
The braise itself is wonderfully hands-off. The beef, half the carrots, anchovies, garlic, and onion go into a Dutch oven and cook slowly in a low oven, with no browning step and no liquid added at the start, since the meat releases plenty of its own juices. Half the olives join partway through, and once the beef is fork-tender, those juices are strained and combined with red wine that has been boiled down by half.
Because there is less meat, you’ll have less juice to work with, so the wine and the total liquid are both reduced from the original, with a little water or beef broth to make up any shortfall. The result is a thicker, more concentrated sauce that clings to every piece of beef instead of pooling thinly in the pot. (In the end, we thought the sauce was still too thin so we added a cornstarch slurry.)
A quick finish with the remaining carrots, red bell pepper, and orange juice rounds out the sauce. Then, off the heat, the remaining olives, orange zest, red wine vinegar, and half the parsley go in, adding a final burst of brightness, brine, and acidity. A last sprinkle of fresh parsley freshens every bite.
Serve it over buttered egg noodles, creamy polenta, or rice, with crusty bread alongside to catch every last drop of sauce.
Beef, Orange and Olive Stew
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. boneless beef chuck roast, well trimmed and cut into 2-inch cubes
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 5 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into ½-inch rounds, divided
- 3 anchovy fillets, patted dry
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup pitted Kalamata olives, rinsed, patted dry and chopped, divided
- 1½ cups dry red wine
- 1 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 Tbsp. grated orange zest, plus ⅓ cup orange juice
- 2 tsp. red wine vinegar
- ½ cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Directions
- Heat the oven to 325°F with a rack in the lower-middle position. In a large Dutch oven, toss the beef with 1 tablespoon salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Add ½ the carrots, the anchovies, oil, garlic and onion, then toss. Cover, transfer to the oven and cook for 2 hours.
- Remove the pot from the oven and stir in ½ cup of the olives. Return to the oven uncovered and cook until a knife inserted into a piece of beef meets no resistance, 1 to 1½ hours.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a large bowl, leaving the vegetables in the pot. Set a fine mesh strainer over a fat separator or medium bowl. Pour the meat juices into the strainer, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard the solids. You should have about 1½ cups liquid; if needed, add water or beef broth to make up the difference.
- Pour the wine into the now-empty pot and bring to a boil over medium-high, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the wine is reduced by half, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, if you strained the meat juices into a bowl, use a spoon to skim off and discard the fat from the surface.
- Pour the defatted meat juices into the pot and add the remaining carrots and the bell pepper. Return to a simmer and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the sauce is slightly thickened, 15 minutes.
- Stir in the orange juice and beef. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce begins to cling to the meat, 3 to 6 minutes. (Here’s where we added a slurry of 1 tablespoon corn starch plus 2 tablespoons cool water.)
- Off heat, stir in the remaining ½ cup olives, the orange zest, vinegar and half of the parsley. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the remaining parsley.
Adapted from a recipe for Milk Street
