Ingredients

4 beef tenderloins cut about 1" thick

or

2 lb beef tip round

or

2 large rib-eye steaks about 1" thick

–

2 Tbls unsalted butter

2 C sliced mushrooms (buttons are fine)

2-4 thinly sliced shallots

1 Tbls chopped fresh chive

1 Tbls chopped fresh parsley

2 C low sodium beef broth

1 Tbls salt

1/2 Tbls fresh ground pepper

1/4 C brandy/cognac

Preparation

Prep:

  1. Slice the mushrooms and shallots.
  2. Bring salted beef to room temperature for about 30 minutes.
  3. Chop chives and parsley fine.
  4. Plug in the crockpot and get it hot.

Cooking:

  1. Heat a heavy pan on med-high to high until hot and then drop in the butter. Once it turns brown and starts to smoke a bit, add the beef (don’t overcrowd the pan, work in batches if you need to) and brown on each side for 1 to 2 minutes.
  2. Once browned, move the steaks to the crockpot. Add the sliced mushrooms, parsley, chive and pepper as a layer on top of the meat.
  3. Keeping the pan hot, add the shallots to the pan and sweat for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Finish deglazing the pan with the beef broth and then pour the whole thing on top of the mushrooms and beef.
  4. Cover and cook for 6 to 8 hours on low (4 to 5 on high).
  5. 30 minutes before you’re ready to serve, add the cognac, recover and smell the magic happen.
  6. Remove the steaks to a large bowl and tent loosely with foil.
  7. Using a colander over a saucepan, separate the mushrooms and the sauce. Add the mushrooms to the bowl with the beef and retent.
  8. Using a roux or flour slurry, create a thickened gravy in the saucepan. Feel free to add more broth and reduce for a few minutes if you think you need more.
  9. Serve with green beans and rice or homemade french fries, ladling the mushrooms and sauce and some additional fresh chopped parsley as you like it.
  10. Enjoy.