French · main

Jeff'S Bordelaise Sauce

Jeff'S Bordelaise Sauce reads umami 5.2, richness 4.8 and allium 3.0 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a French main, about 40 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 5.7 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 3.3 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 2.2 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 3.2 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 5.1 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 3.5 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 5.2 · Richness 4.8 · Allium 3.0 · Earthy 2.9 · Salinity 2.7 · Sweetness 2.7 · Warm Spice 2.6 · Herbaceous 2.6 · Bitterness 2.4 · Funk & Ferment 2.4 · Fruity 2.0 · Sourness 2.0 · Heat 1.2 · Floral 1.1 · Nutty 1.1 · Citrus 0.8

What's in it (14)

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1/4 cup sliced carrots
• 1/4 cup sliced celery
• 25 peppercorns
• 16 whole cloves
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup beef broth
• water, as needed (optional)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, divided
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup red wine
• 1 tablespoon olive oil, or to taste
• 3/4 cup sliced mushrooms

Time & effort: about 40 min (25 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 118.4 kcal, 13 g protein, 5.6 g fat, 3.7 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat · Contains dairy — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (5 steps)

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion, carrots, celery, peppercorns, and cloves in melted butter until onions are browned, 7 to 10 minutes.
2. Stir flour into the onion mixture; cook and stir until the flour is completely moistened, 1 to 2 minutes. Stream beef broth into the skillet while stirring the onion mixture; cook, stirring continually, until the broth thickens into a gravy, 5 to 10 minutes. Add water to thin the gravy as needed to keep it from becoming paste-like.
3. Stir 1 tablespoon parsley into the gravy; continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the parsley imparts flavor to the gravy, 5 to 10 minutes; strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean saucepan. Discard vegetables.
4. Place the saucepan over low heat. Season sauce with salt, pepper, and most of the remaining parsley. Stir red wine into the sauce.
5. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; saute mushrooms in hot oil until completely tender, about 5 minutes. Stir mushrooms into the sauce; garnish with remaining parsley after spooning over steaks.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Adana Kebab — Turkish
• Rosemary Lamb Stew — British
• Kofta-Spiced Beef and Rice Stuffed Zucchini — Middle Eastern
• Shchi (Щи) — Russian
• Couscous with Seven Vegetables (Couscous Bidawi) — Moroccan

Keep reading: what umami, richness, allium mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.