Belgian Carbonnade

Name: Belgian Carbonnade
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 15 min
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: 3 pounds elk shank, (venison shanks or shoulder meat); 1/4 cup duck fat or unsalted butter; Salt; 3 onions, (peeled and sliced root to tip); 1 ounce dried mushrooms, (rehydrated in 1 cup warm water and chopped); 2 teaspoons dried thyme; 3 or 4 tablespoons flour; 2 tablespoons mustard, (Dijon is best); 1 cup venison or beef broth; 1 or 2 bottles of beer, (Belgian abbey ale is traditional); 2 tablespoons cider vinegar; 1 heaping tablespoon red currant jelly; Black pepper; Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

Prep:15minCook:3h

I use shanks here because they have so much connective tissue: Once they break down, all that stuff makes the broth silky and it tastes as if there is a ton of fat in there, but there isn't. If I don't have shanks, shoulder is the way to go. You could do this with a large hind leg roast, but it would not be as silky. If you are using store-bought meat, my top choices would be beef shanks, stew meat and lamb shoulder.

Updated at: Fri, 26 Dec 2025 17:31:01 GMT