Vietnamese Beef Stew
Man. I cannot begin to describe how good this recipe smells. If you’re at all a fan of Vietnamese food. Make this. Make this now. I remember thinking that I don’t care if it even tastes good. That smell. My god the smell. It comes together quickly. Even if I didn’t use the mandolin to slice up the two onions in record time, it would still be quick. I managed to slow my impatience and actually brown the beef in batches since my Dutch oven couldn’t accommodate two pounds worth. I know how much a difference it makes to texture and flavor, but I’m usually so dang lazy. This actually yielded leftovers for our bottomless stomachs that I happily ate the next day.
Inspiration: Tasting Table
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2lbs beef chuck, cut into 1″ cubes
- 2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 1 jalapeno, sliced into rounds
- 4 whole star anise
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 3 cups beef stock
- 4 medium carrots, cut into 1″ pieces
- salt
- sliced baguette for serving
Preparation
In a large Dutch over, heat the butter over medium-high heat. Sear the beef on all sides. If you have to do this in batches [I did], do it. It’s necessary for all of that flavor. Once all of the beef is browned, put it all in the pot. Add the jalapeno, star anise, and cinamon sticks and cook, stirring often, until fragrant. That should take about 2 minutes and then your mind will be blown. This is the quinessential smell of Vietnamese food. It makes the house smell awesome.
Add the fish sauce and stir it into the mixture. Use the spoon to scrape the bottom of the pan to get up all the beef goodies. Pour in the beef stock and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil before reducing it to a simmar and covering the pot with a lid. Cook until the beef is tender. It should take a little over an hour.
Add the carrots and cook with the lid off until the carrots are tender—about 10 minutes. taste for salt. Shred the beef with a couple forks before serving.
Serve in bowls with the baguette.