Beef Jus
A roasted beef jus with no flour. Bones provide structure; meaty trimmings provide flavor. Marrow alone is mostly a fat delivery service.
Ingredients
- 2 kg beef or veal bones with joints and some meat attached
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 200 g onion, chopped
- 100 g carrot, chopped
- 100 g celery, chopped
- 30 g tomato paste
- 150 ml dry red wine
- About 3 litres cold water, plus more as needed
- 1 bay leaf and 3 thyme sprigs
- Salt, to finish only
Measures: 1 tbsp = 15 ml; 1 tsp = 5 ml. Yields are approximate. Pan width and heat affect reduction time; the texture gets the final vote.
Method
Roast deeply
Heat oven to 425°F / 220°C. Oil the bones lightly and roast 60–75 minutes, turning once. Add vegetables for the final 25 minutes and tomato paste for the final 10; do not let the paste burn.
Recover the fond
Move bones and vegetables to a stockpot. Pour off fat. Add wine to the roasting pan off heat, scrape up brown bits, and transfer the liquid to the pot. Add herbs and enough water to cover.
Simmer
Bring slowly to a gentle simmer. Skim and cook for 4–6 hours, keeping bones covered with water as needed. No aggressive boiling or enthusiastic stirring.
Concentrate
Strain and skim fat. Reduce the strained liquid to about 500–600 ml, usually 45–90 minutes. Stop based on flavor and body; salt only at the end.
Checkpoint: Deep brown, clean-tasting liquid that lightly coats a spoon and gels when chilled if the bones supplied enough gelatin.
Failure modes and fixes
Cloudy does not automatically mean ruined, but hard boiling emulsifies fat. Chill and defat if necessary. Salted stock is a poor shortcut for this level of reduction.
More rescue techniques →Put it to work
Roast beef, lamb, or a spoonful under mashed potatoes.
Storage and reheating
Cool promptly in shallow containers and refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F / 32°C). Keep at 40°F / 4°C or colder for 3–4 days, or freeze in portions. Bring reheated cooked sauces to a rolling boil; for butter-finished sauces, ideally store the base and add fresh butter after reheating. Cream sauces may separate after freezing. Storage and handling reference.