The pot-au-feu is a French boiled dinner.

There are variations as to the cuts of beef and the vegetables involved, but in general a pot-au-feu will contain:

Beef (generally, low-cost cuts that need long cooking) and usually some kind of cartilaginous meat, such as oxtail and/or bone with marrow

Vegetables: carrots, turnips, leeks, celery, and onions

Spices: bouquet garni, salt, black pepper and cloves.

Cooking cartilaginous meat in the stew will result in gelatin being dissolved into the broth. If the stew is allowed to cool, the broth may turn into a jelly, resulting in an interesting texture. Allowing the stew to cool also allows for the removal of excess grease which forms a layer at the surface.

The dish is often served with coarse salt and strong Dijon mustard and sometimes also with gherkins and samphire pickled in vinegar.

The pot-au-feu broth may be used as a soup (often enriched with rice, pasta or toasted bread), as a base for sauces, or for cooking vegetables or pasta. Ready-to-use "pot-au-feu" concentrated cubes for dissolving into hot water are on the market for such purposes as a substitute for true pot-au-feu broth.