Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon

Last updated on: September 24, 2026

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This Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon is essentially what happens when a beef stew puts on a nice shirt and starts speaking French.

You’ve got tender stewing beef, smoky bacon, carrots and mushrooms slowly cooked in a rich red wine sauce until the beef practically falls apart. Better still, the slow cooker does most of the work, so you get all that deep, slow-cooked flavour without hovering over the hob for three hours pretending you’re in a French bistro.

Each serving contains 48 g protein and 377 calories, with lean stewing beef and bacon providing most of the protein. That makes it a particularly good option if you’re trying to lose weight while still eating filling, family-friendly dinners rather than surviving on tiny portions.

You’ll need a slow cooker and frying pan, and the recipe makes approximately 6 servings.

Why You’ll Love This High-Protein Recipe

• 48 g protein per serving – a seriously decent contribution towards your daily protein target.
• Only 377 calories per portion, before adding your choice of sides.
• Ideal for meal prep because the flavour gets even better after sitting overnight.
• Freezer-friendly, so make the full batch even if you're not feeding six people.
• Uses straightforward ingredients available in any decent UK supermarket.
• The slow cooker turns inexpensive stewing beef beautifully tender while you get on with something more interesting.

If hands-off beef dinners are your thing, my Slow Cooker Pulled Beef follows the same high-protein, minimal-faff philosophy, with around 43 g protein per serving.

Pre-Cooking Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon for Flavour

One of the most important (and totally non-negotiable) steps in making a proper Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon is pre-cooking the onions, bacon, and garlic.

Why? Because of a little thing called the Maillard reaction. Sounds fancy, but it’s just science-speak for the magical transformation that happens when food browns. When you fry the onions, bacon, and garlic before slow cooking, you create deep, complex, savoury caramelised flavours that simply can’t be achieved by chucking everything into the slow cooker raw.

Skipping this step would be like going to Paris and only eating at McDonald’s—a tragic waste of potential. This quick browning stage adds a layer of richness to the stew, ensuring every bite is packed with that slow-cooked, rustic goodness. It’s the difference between a nice meal and one that makes you want to weep with joy. Trust me, your taste buds will thank you.

The Importance of Reducing Wine – No One Likes a Boozy Stew

Key Ingredients

Lean Stewing Beef. The main protein powerhouse, with 1 kg giving you big, tender chunks of beef once they've had eight hours to slowly cook.

Smoked Bacon. Adds loads of savoury, smoky depth. Trimming away the excess fat keeps the calories sensible without sacrificing the flavour.

Red Wine. This is where much of that classic beef bourguignon flavour comes from. Reducing it before it reaches the slow cooker concentrates the flavour and prevents the finished sauce tasting overly boozy.

Onions & Garlic. The aromatic foundations of the sauce. Browning the onions first adds considerably more flavour than simply chucking them into the slow cooker raw.

Carrots. Add sweetness and bulk while standing up nicely to the long cooking time.

Mushrooms. Their earthy flavour is made for beef and red wine. Halving them rather than slicing them also helps stop them disappearing into mushroom oblivion after eight hours.

Tomato Purée. Just enough to add richness and a little acidity without turning the dish into a tomato-based stew.

Cornflour. Helps create that thick, glossy sauce that actually clings to the beef rather than leaving you with beef swimming lessons.

Thyme. A classic partner for beef, mushrooms and red wine, adding a subtle earthy, herby flavour.

For another cosy beef dinner built around similar ingredients, my Slow Cooker Beef Casserole packs around 47 g protein per serving.

How To Make Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon

Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the smoked bacon and chopped onions, then fry until the bacon starts to brown and the onions have softened and turned golden. This first bit of browning is worth the effort – it gives the finished bourguignon much more flavour.

Add the crushed garlic to the bacon and onions and fry for another 30 seconds, stirring so it doesn't catch. You only need long enough to take the raw edge off the garlic and get it smelling suitably glorious.

Pour in the 300 ml red wine, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let it bubble away until the liquid has reduced by roughly one-third. This concentrates the wine and gives your Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon a much richer sauce.

Tip the bacon, onion and red wine mixture into the slow cooker. Add the beef, cornflour, thyme, tomato purée, salt, carrots and mushrooms, then stir everything together until well combined.

Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours, until the beef is beautifully tender and the sauce is rich and thick. Give everything a good stir before serving.

Serving & Storage

To Store

Allow your Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon to cool before transferring it to an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3 days. Like many stews, it's arguably even better the following day once all those flavours have had a night together.

To Reheat

Reheat gently in a saucepan over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until piping hot throughout. Alternatively, microwave individual portions until thoroughly heated, stirring halfway through.

If the sauce has thickened considerably in the fridge, loosen it with a small splash of water or beef stock.

To Freeze

Cool completely and divide into individual freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 3 months.

Defrost overnight in the fridge before reheating until piping hot. Individual portions make excellent emergency dinners for evenings when cooking motivation has officially left the building.

Serving Suggestions

The obvious choice is creamy mashed potato, because that thick red wine sauce demands something capable of soaking it up.

For a lighter option, try steamed green vegetables, cauliflower mash or roasted vegetables. Rice also works brilliantly, while crusty bread is ideal if you're firmly in the "no sauce left behind" camp.

Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon

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Rich, hearty, and effortlessly fancy, this Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon brings all the flavours of a posh French bistro straight to your kitchen—minus the need for a passport

• Total Time: 8 hrs and 5 mins
• Yield: 6 1x

Ingredients

Units MUS Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 300 g packet of smoked bacon (fat removed)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 300 ml of red wine
• 1 kg lean stewing beef, cubed
• 30 g cornflour
• 1 tbsp. thyme
• 20 g tomato puree
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 150g mushrooms, halved

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Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and brown the bacon and onions. This makes them taste about ten times better.

Add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds.

Pour in the wine and let it reduce by a third—basically, let it bubble away and get all intense and yummy.

Tip everything into the slow cooker, then add the beef, cornflour, thyme, tomato purée, salt, carrots, and mushrooms.

Give it all a good stir, put the lid on, and walk away for 8 hours while your house starts to smell like a Parisian bistro.

Serve with mash, rice, crusty bread, or just a spoon and a dream.

• Author: Scott Baptie
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 8 hrs
• Category: Meat
• Method: Slow Cooker

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1
• Calories: 377
• Fat: 13g
• Carbohydrates: 17g
• Protein: 48g

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