Name: Red Wine Sauce
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 5 pieces and chilled; 12 ounces beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieces; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 2 cups red wine; 2 cups beef broth; 1 shallot, sliced thin; 2 tablespoons soy sauce; 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar; 6 sprigs fresh thyme; 2 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch; 1 tablespoon cold water; Salt and pepper

Why This Recipe Works

Browning beef stew meat added savory, beefy depth. A shallot and a bit of sugar balanced some of the tannins from a hefty amount of earthy red wine. Whisking in cornstarch and extra butter to finish gave the sauce an unctuous, velvety texture.

Before You Begin

Medium-bodied red wines, such as Côtes du Rhône or Pinot Noir, are best for this recipe. You can substitute chain meat trimmed from a beef tenderloin for the stew meat called for here.

Instructions

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned and fond forms on bottom of saucepan, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add tomato paste and cook until darkened in color and fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in wine, broth, shallot, soy sauce, sugar, and thyme sprigs and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Cook until reduced to 4 cups, 12 to 15 minutes.

Strain sauce through fine-mesh strainer set over bowl; discard solids. Return sauce to saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Dissolve cornstarch in cold water. Whisk cornstarch mixture into sauce and boil until slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. Reduce heat to low and whisk in remaining 4 tablespoons butter, 1 piece at a time. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.