Pot-au-feu
Pot-au-feu
Boiled beef, marrow bones and winter vegetables — the broth is dinner and so is the meat.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Pot-au-feu.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 3 hr 30 min
- Total
- 3 hr 55 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- A bit special$16–28 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Pot-au-feu is a pot of beef and bones simmered until the broth is clean and the meat yields, with carrot, leek, celery and cabbage. You eat the broth first or beside, then the meat with mustard and coarse salt. It is not a brown stew. Skim.
Ingredients
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Cover meat and bones with cold water, bring to a simmer, skim hard. Add charred onion, bay, pepper. Simmer 2.5 hours.
150 minStep 2
Add carrot, celery, leek and cabbage. Simmer until the vegetables are tender, 30–40 minutes. Salt.
40 minStep 3
Broth in bowls. Meat and vegetables on a platter. Mustard, coarse salt, toast for the marrow.
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 24 August.
Substitutions
Marrow bone → Just stewing beef
Less silk in the broth. Still a pot.
Tips
- A night in the fridge and a lifted fat cap makes a cleaner broth.
- Cornichons on the table are not optional in some houses.
History & culture
The French boiled dinner. Sunday. Leftovers become the next day's hash or a vinaigrette plate.
A peasant pot that restaurants made ceremonial. The logic is still: cheap cuts, time, vegetables.
Traditional
Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food. Not copied from another recipe site. Official recipe photography is pending. Photograph: Benoît Prieur via Openverse (cc0 1.0). https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77990696
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Pot-au-feu take?
3 hr 55 min all in — 25 min prep, 3 hr 30 min cook. That is the time on this recipe, not a guess.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 6 pots. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Nut-free.
What does it cost to cook?
A bit special — about $16–28 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Stockpot.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 2 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Marrow bone → Just stewing beef. Less silk in the broth. Still a pot.
Any tips from this recipe?
A night in the fridge and a lifted fat cap makes a cleaner broth. Cornichons on the table are not optional in some houses.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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