"Down & Dirty" Beef Bourguignon

4 ounces bacon, diced

3 pounds sirloin chunks or filet tips (bite-sized pieces)

Salt and pepper

Flour for dredging

Peanut oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup beef stock

3 cups red wine

⅔

teaspoon thyme

1 bay leaf

1 bag (14-16 ounces) frozen pearl onions

1 pound fresh button mushrooms, stems discarded

Chopped parsley, optional

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook bacon in a 5-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, about 10-15 minutes.

In the meantime, rinse beef with cool water and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper, dredge in flour.

Remove bacon when cooked, leaving the fat. (Save bacon for another use.) Raise heat to high, add thin layer of peanut oil to pan and brown beef, a few pieces at a time, adding oil as needed. Remove browned meat to a plate and keep warm.

When meat the last batch of meat has browned, add all the meat back to the pot along with the chopped onion, garlic, stock, wine, thyme and bay leaf; salt and pepper to taste. Cover pot and place in oven for 11/2 hours.

Add the pearl onions and mushrooms and continue to cook until beef is fork tender, about 1 hour more for sirloin, longer for tougher cuts of beef. Serve over egg noodles. Garnish with parsley if desired.

Serves nine.