Provencal Pot au Feu a Traditional Recipe from France
©Francois de Melogue
Growing up, the beginning of winter was marked by the first pot au feu appearing on our table. My mother’s version is more traditional and typical of what you would find in most homes. It is made with different cuts of beef that are slowly simmered together. The vegetables are cooked afterward in the resulting broth, then served together on a giant platter at the table with cornichon, horseradish sauce, tomato sauce, and mustard.
Traditional Pot au Feu from Provence
My mother’s traditional Pot au Feu is typical of what you would find in most Provençal homes. It is made with different cuts of beef that are slowly simmered together and served on a giant platter at the table with traditional condiments.
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Beef and Broth:
- 3 lbs beef short ribs or shanks or oxtails
- 2 lbs beef brisket
- 1 sweet onion cut in half, studded with 6 cloves, then charred under your broiler
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 bunch winter savory
- 1 large sprig fresh thyme
- 1 tbsp herbes de Provence
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 2 star anise
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1 head garlic
For the Vegetables:
- 4 leeks white and light green parts, cut into 3-inch lengths, halved, and washed well
- 8 thin carrots halved and cut into 3-inch lengths
- 8 small turnips peeled and left whole, or 4 medium turnips, cut in half
For the Pork Broth, Potatoes, and Cabbage:
- 8 cups cold water
- 10 oz salted pork (petit salé) meaty
- 8 small potatoes
- 1/4 head cabbage use green cabbage
For the Horseradish Sauce:
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 8 marrow bones canoe-cut, or 8 slices of poached bone marrow. See notes.
- fleur de sel
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley
- whole grain mustard
- Dijon mustard
- cornichons (pickles)
- 1 cup tomato sauce Use whatever recipe you have.
Instructions
Prepare the Beef and Beef Broth:
- In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, combine the short ribs and brisket, cover with cold water, and bring to a rapid boil over high heat. With tongs, transfer the meat to a large bowl and discard the water (this is done to create a clear broth). Rinse out the pot, return the meat to the pot, and add the onion, bay leaf, savory, thyme, herbes de Provence, salt, peppercorns, star anise, cinnamon, and garlic. Add cold water to cover everything by 1 inch.
- Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. As soon as it boils, reduce the heat so it barely simmers (see Notes below). Cook until the meat is so tender that a knife passes through it with no resistance, about 3 hours.
- Place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl and strain the meat, keeping both the liquid and the beef. Discard the vegetables. Transfer the beef to a warm platter.
Prepare the Pork Broth, Potatoes, and Cabbage:
- In a saucepot, combine the water and salt pork and bring to a rapid boil over high heat. Remove any scum that floats to the top, then reduce the heat so it is barely simmering and cook for 1.5 hours. 30 minutes before the beef is done, add the potatoes and cabbage to the pork broth and cook until they are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove and keep them warm.
- Strain the meat and vegetables out, keeping the liquid for another use. Save the salt pork for another dish. Transfer the vegetables to the serving platter.
Prepare the Vegetables:
- About 30 minutes before the beef is done, wrap the leeks in cheesecloth and drop them, along with the carrots and turnips, into the beef broth. Simmer for 30 minutes or until tender. Remove all vegetables and arrange them on the platter.
Prepare the Horseradish Sauce:
- While the beef is simmering, put all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and puree for 20 seconds. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
To Serve:
- Elegantly arrange all the vegetables and meat on a serving platter. Traditionally, the broth is served first with marrow toast sprinkled with parsley. Then, the meat and vegetables are passed around for everyone to help themselves. More broth is ladled over, and diners may customize their bowls as they like with horseradish sauce, tomato sauce, mustard, and cornichons.
Notes
Canoe-cut marrow bones are easy to find nowadays. I like to roast the roast the bones seasoned with salt and pepper for 15 minutes at 400ºF before serving.
Tip: The object here is to cook the meat and broth so ridiculously slow that the stock remains crystal clear. Boiling makes broth cloudy.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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