Making a sauce is something that many people fear as they think they need a lot of culinary skills. This is not the case. Red wine sauce is one of the simplest sauces you can make.
It is a great accompaniment to steaks, red meats, and game meats. There are many variations to this basic sauce. So, once you have mastered this simple version, you can start experimenting with different variations to suit your tastes.
Here is how to make a red wine sauce.
| Preparation time: 5 minutes | |
| Cooking time: 20 minutes | |
| Servings: N/A | |
| Vegetarian/ vegan: NO | |
| Dairy-free: NO | |
| Gluten-free: YES |
Ingredients for Red Wine Sauce
- 2 cups of red wine
- 1 cup of beef stock
- 1 finely chopped red onion
- 3 crushed cloves of garlic
- 30g butter
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil for cooking
To Make Red Wine Sauce
- Chop the onions and crush the garlic.
- Melt the butter over medium heat with a little olive oil. The oil is for heat while the butter is for colour and flavour.
- Add the chopped onions and crushed garlic and fry over medium heat until softened.
- Add the red wine to the pan and stir.
- Turn up the heat to bring the mixture to the boil as this will cook the alcohol out of the sauce.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for three to four minutes.
- Add in the beef stock and bring to the boil again before reducing to medium-low heat.
- Simmer for 12 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.
- Season the red wine sauce with salt and black pepper.
TIPS
- Smooth sauce- If you prefer, you can sieve out the garlic and onions after cooking for a smooth sauce.
- Quicker thickening- The sugars in the wine are what thickens this sauce during the cooking process. If you want the sauce to thicken faster, you can add one teaspoon of cornflour to the sauce. However, this can give the sauce a slightly different appearance.
- Choosing a red wine: When choosing a red wine to use for this sauce, read our simple guide to the best red wines for cooking.