Œufs en Meurette Recipe

This Œufs en Meurette recipe combines soft poached eggs with a rich red wine sauce made with lardons, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, thyme, beef stock, and butter. Featured on Dinner in Paris with host Romain Avril, this rustic Burgundian dish delivers deep savoury flavour, tender eggs, and a glossy sauce that is ideal for serving with crisp toasted bread.

The Inspiration

Œufs en Meurette is a classic dish associated with Burgundy, where red wine plays an important role in traditional cooking. In this Burgundian poached eggs recipe, eggs are served over a deeply flavoured sauce enriched with bacon, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, thyme, beef stock, and red wine.

On Dinner in Paris, host Romain Avril prepares the sauce by first browning the lardons, allowing their flavour to build in the pan before the mushrooms are added. Shallot, garlic, and thyme follow, creating the aromatic base before the beef stock and wine are poured in.

The eggs are poached separately in gently simmering water with white vinegar. Cooking them for approximately 2½ to 3 minutes keeps the whites set while preserving the soft yolk that makes Œufs en Meurette especially satisfying.

Ingredients

4 large eggs
500 ml (2 cups) red wine
250 ml (1 cup) beef stock
1 tbsp olive oil
120 g (4.5 oz) lardons (or diced bacon)
200 g (2 cups) white mushrooms, quartered
1 large shallot, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp flour
1 tbsp butter
2 tsp thyme
2 tbsp white vinegar (for poaching)
Fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Toasted bread, for serving

Method

In a saucepan over medium heat, heat olive oil. Add lardons and cook until lightly browned (5–6 minutes).
Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add shallot , garlic and thyme, cook for 2 minutes. Add stock and red wine and bring to simmer.
Reduce over medium heat for 12–15 minutes. Reduce by half. In a small pan over medium-low heat, melt butter and stir in flour.
Whisk the flour roux into sauce. It is done when the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
Bring pot of water to gentle simmer (not boiling) and add vinegar. Crack eggs into small bowls.
Slide gently into water. Poach 2½–3 minutes. They are done when the whites are set but the yolk is still soft.
Spoon sauce into bowls. Place egg on top. Garnish with parsley.
Serve immediately with toasted bread. Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

This Œufs en Meurette recipe is ideal for brunch, lunch, a light dinner, or an elegant French-inspired starter. Serve the dish in shallow bowls so the red wine sauce surrounds the poached eggs while leaving the yolks clearly visible.

Toasted bread is an essential accompaniment because it provides a crisp contrast to the soft eggs and gives you something to soak up the rich Burgundy-style sauce. A rustic baguette, country loaf, or thick toast works especially well.

The dish is best served immediately after the eggs are poached. Breaking into the soft yolk allows it to blend naturally into the wine sauce, creating an even richer texture with every bite. Served with toasted bread, the dish feels both rustic and refined, making it well suited to brunch, lunch, or a French-inspired first course.

Final Thoughts

This Œufs en Meurette recipe showcases the deep, comforting flavours associated with classic Burgundian cooking. The combination of red wine, beef stock, bacon, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and thyme creates a savoury sauce that feels substantial despite the dish’s relatively short cooking time.

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