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For those that perused my recent prime rib thread, I'm posting the 2 au jus recipes we tried here. These recipes are simple and they certainly are not unique, but they are good and go well with prime rib. The only difference in the 2 recipes is the beef base I used, so try 'em both and see which one you like best. Please feel free to offer any critique you wish and if you have a recipe you like better, then please share! I always like trying something new and better.

Here's recipe 1 (steps in making au jus):

1) Common to both recipes is to sautee (can I use that word here?) 1 chopped medium carrot, 1 chopped stalk of celery, and chopped 1/2 yellow onion in 2 tablespoons butter. The french have fancy word for this but I like to call it vegetables cooked in butter. I cook the vegetables until the onions become almost transparent and celery starts to lose its color. I cooked my vegetables in a non-stick skillet but a stainless steel one would be better IMHO so you get some good brown stuff sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Brown stuff = Smiler

2) Add 11 ounces of Kitchen Basics Beef Cooking Stock to the pan (you can get this or something similar at the store) and bring to a boil. Scrape the bottom of pan to loosen up all the brown stuff. Reduce heat and simmer until volume reduced by half.

3) Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl and discard the vegetables.

4) Add the liquid back to the skillet and turn heat to low. Season with kosher salt and pepper to taste and add about 1/4 - 1/2 teaspooon Worcestershire sauce. Enjoy!

The 2nd recipe is identical to the above recipe except I added 1 10-1/2 oz can of Campbells Beef Consomme to the pan instead of the beef stock. On step 4, I season the same but added another tablespoon butter to the sauce. I did this because the consomme has a deeper flavor than the beef stock and the butter helps to mellow it out a little without diluting it. I'd also add less Worcestershire sauce to this one.

In my house, we all liked the first recipe better (using the beef stock) because the flavor was very beefy yet it wasn't too overpowering. The consomme was a little overpowering and masked the flavor of the prime rib too much. Your taste buds might disagree. We all agreed, however, that the au jus made with the beef consomme would be excellent as a french dip for prime rib sandwiches or philly cheesesteak sandwiches.

The sauteed vegetables definitely added to the overall flavor of both.

So, give 'em a try and let me know what you think.
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Thanks for the info.

I talk a bit about Au Jus in PR 101 and it's good to see people adding some ideas to the mix, it's a frequent question and people think it's hard.

It's not as you prove and it's worth the effort. Good to see the same method, just changing the additive liquid.

Couple of thoughts. The consumme has gelatin in it so it will tend to have a different taste, typically more rich. As most Au Jus is "thin" you probably could just add some water to dilute the taste. Maybe add both the stock and the consumme.

Of the shelf stocks (was it a stock or a broth) really aren't stocks. Stocks are created from bones and broths are created from meats (trimmings etc).

Key is stock vs broth. The traditional uses the bones and pan drippings, but it's hard to do that method in a smoker (the smoke makes it too intense.

For Christmas and my 40 day wet aged brisket, I'm making my own beef stock (bought cheap beef bones) and gonne make it truly from scratch. I'll post some Au Jus 101 photos later.

Thanks Rocky, great info.

Russ
quote:
The french have fancy word for this

Mirepoix

Folks, for those who've never tried it, you owe it to yourself to learn how to make a beef/veal stock.

Start with 5 lbs of beef/veal Femur bones. They should be cut at least once to expose the marrow. Roast them at 350 for one hr. Add 2 cups each of rough chopped onions, carrots celery. Roast 1 more hr. The veggies want some caramelization. Remove all to a stock pot and add 1.5 gal of cold water. Add 2 cups of water to the roasting pan and scrape up all the crusty goodies. Add them to the stock pot. At this point you can season the broth with a sprig or two of rosemary, thyme, 2-3 bay leaves and parsley...maybe 4-6 cloves and 1 Tbsp of black peppercorns.

Simmer 3 hrs and strain. You'll have a fabulous meat stock for au jus, soups and sauces. Beef stock freezes well.

Salt: I normally don't salt the stock until I'm ready to use it
Last edited by maxq
That sounds really good, MaxQue! I'm putting your recipe on my list of things to try.

Someone inquired about sodium content. The Kitchen Basics Beef Stock has 430 mg sodium in 1 cup. I didn't check the sodium level of the consomme. The former definitely didn't taste as salty but we all liked the beef flavor. It probably isn't as good as MaxQue's recipe, but in a pinch it ain't bad.

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