# For chez suz: Daube Provencal



## buckytom (Dec 7, 2004)

i got this recipe from the food section of my local paper who had interviwed tony bourdain about his new cookbook, "les halles". this is a recipe from the new book. i tweaked it a bit by adding more lamb, carrots, and potatoes and some of the other ingredients to "beef" it up a bit. also, i used red wine since i had no white in the house. it made the sauce darker and heartier, imo.

daube provencal (lamb neck stew)

2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
3 pounds lamb neck and shoulder with bones (i used 2 pounds of neck, 2 pounds of shoulder blade chops, cut into chunks)
salt and pepper
1/2 pound bacon, cut into small cudes or lardons
1 small onion, finely diced ( i used a large onion)
1 celery rib, finely chopped (i used 2 ribs)
2 garlic cloves, crushed (i used 4)
1 tbsp tomato paste (i used a big heaping tbsp)
1 tbsp flour
1 cup white wine (i used 2 cups red wine)
1 cup strong, dark veal, chicken, or lamb stock (i used strong turkey stock)
1 small carrot, coarsely chopped (i used about 2 cups of halved baby carrots)
1 bouquet garni (a few sprigs of flat leaf parsley and thyme, tied up with a coupla bay leaves)
zest of a whole orange
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into football wedges ( i used 4 large wax potatoes)
flat leaf parsley, chopped, for a garnish.

heat olive oil in a dutch oven on high heat. add butter; foam it; let it subside. season lamb with salt and pepper and sear on all sides in the hot pan until it is dark brown. when depply browned, remove and set aside.
add bacon to the still hot pan and cook until crispy and the fat has been rendered. remove bacon and set aside. discard most of the fat from the pan; add onion, celery, and garlic. cook over medium-high heat until the veggies have caramalized, about 5 minutes. using a wooden spoon, stir in tomato paste, cook for about 1 minute. stir in flour, and cook for an additional minute. (by this time, the paste and flour are really sticking to the bottom, but not burning). stir in wine and scrape up all of the brown stuff. bring wine to a boil, reduce by half. add stock and a teaspoon of demi-glace, if it's available. (i skipped the demi-glace). bring back to a boil; reduce immediately to a simmer.add lamb, carrots, bouquet garni, orange zest, and bacon. season with salt and pepper, and cover the pot. simmer over low heat for about 90 minutes, occasionally skimming any fat off the surface (i had to skim very little fat).
after 90 minutes, add potatoes and cook until they are tender, about 15 minutes or so. skim any fat a final time, making sure there's no film on the surface.
serve in a big bowl, garnish with parsley. goes really well with crusty buttered bread...


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## chez suz (Dec 7, 2004)

Hooray..Bucky..I kept looking for your name nxt to the category..today I saw it and said could it be...and yes it was dedicated to me and everything...Thanks...I will be making it for sure...just reading the recipe (love your comments) I know its my kind of stew.


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## buckytom (Dec 7, 2004)

sorry it took so long chez suz, but dw decided to "help" me clean up, and decided to put all of the newspapers on my desk into the recycling pile. unfortunately, many of the papers were food sections i was saving for the recipes. but i found it, and there you go (and fannie's your aunt)...


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## chez suz (Dec 19, 2004)

Buckytom...made the daube yesterday...I made very few changes to the original recipe...as you did I used a larger onion, more garlic, a handful of baby carrots uncut and yukon gold potatoes cut in chunks.  I used a mixture of herbs I have dried by my windowsill. A good hit of tomato paste (I dont measure)
I did use the white wine and chicken stock...I'm curious as to whether you tasted the orange flavor through the red wine...as the taste was subtle but added what I thought something special.  If you didn't, do it again w/white wine!!
This stew is a winner!  Thank you for sharing the recipe...its a keeper.


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## Audeo (Dec 19, 2004)

Copying...pasting...

And with deepest appreciation to both of you!  YUM!


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## buckytom (Dec 20, 2004)

you're quite welcome audeo!

i'm very glad you enjoyed it chez suz. i did taste the orange with the red wine. before the dish was finished, i thought the orange was a bit too strong. but given enough time, it shaded into the background, and like you said, added a nice extra something, a certain "je ne sais quoi". in the interview/article i read, tony bourdain commented that he would add more orange zest, because that makes the dish.
i am going to try it with white next time as a comparison. the red made a luxuriously deep, rich gravy. i'm curious to see how it is with white, and i copped a bottle of pinot grigio as my payment for running my office's christmas party...


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