• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Wine Lover's Kitchen
  • About
  • Summer
  • Recipes
  • Wine
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About
  • Summer
  • Recipes
  • Wine
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About
    • Summer
    • Recipes
    • Wine
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Sauces

    Demi-glace

    Published: Jul 2, 2016 · Modified: Oct 14, 2024 by Carolyn Hetke · This post may contain affiliate links,

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Demi-glace could also be called 'Black Gold!'   It adds a richness and depth of flavour that takes your dish up to professional levels.

    Demi-glace in a cup.

    🎉What Makes This Recipe Special?

    I wish I had understood years ago what a difference demi-glace makes to a dish. The addition of the rich demi-glace will take any sauce you make to restaurant-level quality.

    Demi-glace is expensive to buy if you can even find it.  To make it yourself is not difficult but it does take time.  If you entertain often, you can make this and store some in your freezer in half-cup quantities.

    🥣How To Make Demi-glace

    You start by making veal stock.  This involves about 8 hours of roasting bones and vegetables, and reducing the stock produced by half.

    Veal bones roasting in broth

    To make the veal stock you start with about 16 cups of water and reduce it to about 8 cups of veal stock.  The demi-glass further reduces, so the 8 cups of veal stock becomes about 4 cups of demi-glace.  The recipe below is based on 2 cups of stock reducing to about 1 cup of demi-glace. At this point you can add in some other herbs, wine or liquor to give your demi-glace the flavour profile you want. You can see by the amount of reduction here how rich the flavour must be.

    The good news is it is so flavourful that a little goes a LONG way! Divide it up in smaller portions to use in recipes like Classic French Short Ribs or Slow Cooker Tuscan Sausage Tortellini Soup.

    Here is a fairly simple demi-glace recipe that goes well with beef. I personally use thyme and bay leaves for beef and if I wanted it for lamb I would add a sprig of rosemary.

    As a sauce for beef dishes, a little pool under or on the meat serving goes a long way because the flavour is so intense.  A little drizzle over potatoes or around the plate will also add a punch of flavour.

    I sometimes add a cup to a soup broth.  A 1:3 ratio- 1 cup of demi-glace to 3 cups of broth is enough to add incredible richness to a soup.  You can't quite put your finger on what it is but you know it is there!

    Both the stock and demi-glace freeze well so go ahead and make up a batch.

    Check out some of these recipes that will shine with the addition of a bit of demi-glace.

    Related Recipes

    • A pasta bowl with Bigoli covered with duck ragu, garnished with grana padano and rosemary at a table with a glass of amarone wine and focaccia bread.
      Venetian Duck Ragù With Bigoli
    • Pistachio and black olive coating on steak.
      Pistachio, Black Olive Crusted Beef Steak
    • Classic French Short Ribs
      Classic French Short Ribs
    • Brandied beef bourguignon in a serving dish.
      Brandied Beef Bourguignon

    This is admittedly a labour of love. But the hands-on time is not so significant - you just have to be around the house. So... make a big batch and fill your freezer!

    Demi-glace in a cup.

    Demi-glace

    This rich sauce is the secret weapon to take your cooking from good to great.
    Author: Carolyn Hetke

    If you tried this, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know it went in the 📝 comments below!

    5 from 1 vote
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    SaveSaved!
    Print Pin Facebook
    Course: Condiments
    Cuisine: French
    Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time: 35 minutes mins
    Total Time: 45 minutes mins
    Servings: 1 cup

    Ingredients

    • olive oil for sauteeing
    • 1 shallot finely minced
    • 1 clove garlic finely minced
    • ¼ cup red wine good quality
    • 2 cups veal stock
    • 1 ½ teaspoon black pepper
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 sprig fresh thyme (optional)
    • 1 bay leaf (optional)

    Instructions

    • Heat small amount of olive oil in small saucepan. Sautee shallot and garlic until shallot is translucent. Add red wine and bring to a boil. Add veal stock, salt and pepper. Simmer until reduced to about half or desired consistency. (This can take 30-40 minutes depending on size of pan and heat level). Adjust seasonings and serve with meat.

    Notes

    Nutrition is per Tablespoon.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 9kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.04g | Saturated Fat: 0.01g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 132mg | Potassium: 69mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 0.3g | Vitamin A: 5IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.2mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @thewineloverski or tag #thewineloverski!

    Reader Interactions

    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi! I am Carolyn - the Wine Lover in the Wine Lover's Kitchen! I absolutely love having friends and family around my table with great food and wine to enjoy. If you want great recipes and wine recommendations you have come to the right place!

    Learn more about me →

    Summer Recipes

    • Potato salad in a bowl.
      Potato Salad With Celery and Cucumber
    • Beet, heirloom tomato and burrata wedges on a plate.
      Viking Cruise Recipe: Beet and Burrata Salad
    • A bowl of cold, creamy, almond soup with toasted almond and green grape garnish.
      Chilled Spanish Garlic Soup (Sopa de Ajo)
    • A bowl of cold cherry soup.
      Cherry Soup with Cinnamon Croutons

    Popular Recipes

    • Close up of creamy Cafe de Paris sauce.
      Café de Paris Sauce - The Original 'Secret Sauce'
    • Puffy, crispy flour tortilla flavoured with olive oil and chili, lime seasoning.
      Air Fryer Tortillas
    • Golden brown spinach feta scones on a plate.
      Savoury Spinach and Feta Scones
    • Piece of Italian crumb cake with pistachio cream filling, topped with crushed pistachios and icing sugar.
      Pistachio Cream Crumb Cake
    • Medium rare beef tenderloin sliced on a platter.
      Air Fryer Beef Tenderloin
    • Baked sweetened condensed milk buns piled in a basket.
      Bread Machine Sweetened Condensed Milk Dinner Rolls

    Footer

    ↑ Back to top

    Home

    Recipes Wine

    About

    • Privacy Policy & Disclaimer
    • Accessibility Policy
    • About

    Newsletter

    Tired of wandering around looking at wine labels? Get recipes and my Best Buy wine picks every two weeks!

    • Sign Up!

    Contact

    • Contact

    Follow me on:

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • X -Former Twitter

    Copyright © 2025 The Wine Lover's Kitchen

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.