Vietnamese Beef Stew (Bo Kho)
Serves: 4 to 8
A Vietnamese Beef Stew (Bo Kho) which is fragrant with lemongrass, star anise and cloves. Serve with crusty baguette or flat rice noodles. Recipe also for Instant Pot and pressure cooker.
Ingredients
For the Marinade
- 1 teaspoon Chinese five-spive powder
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper, freshly cracked
- 250 ml (1 cup) Coca-Cola, optional, see Kitchen Notes
- 1 ½ kg (3 lb) beef brisket, chuck steak or stewing steak
For the Beef & Carrot Stew
- vegetable oil
- 1 brown onion, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 400 g (14 oz) canned diced tomatoes
- 2 litres (8 cups) beef stock
- 1 teaspoon fine salt, or to taste
- 3 star anise
- 3 cloves
- 3 lemongrass stalks, bruised
- 5 large carrots, or more, peeled and sliced thickly (about 1 cm thick) on the diagonal
- 1 large daikon, peeled and sliced thickly (about 1 cm thick)
To Serve
- Thai basil, torn
- coriander, (cilantro) roughly chopped
- red chillies, finely chopped
- crusty bread
Instructions
To Prepare the Vietnamese Beef Stew
- In a large bowl, mix together the ingredients for the marinade.
- Cut the beef brisket or chuck steak into large pieces, about 5 x 10 cm / 2 x 4 inches.
- Place the beef into the marinade and make sure all of the pieces are coated.
- Cover the bowl with some cling film.
- Place the bowl in the fridge for the meat to marinate for at least 2-3 hours, but preferably overnight.
- Remove the meat from the marinade and pat dry with some kitchen paper.
- Let the meat come to room temperature before cooking.
- In a large saucepan, heat some oil and brown the beef in batches. Due to the sugar content in the Coca-Cola, the meat will brown quickly and will burn easily if you do not keep a close eye.
- Set the browned beef aside on a plate.
- In the same pan, cook the onions and garlic until they have softened.
- Add the tomato paste or canned tomatoes and cook for a few minutes.
- Add the stock, salt, star anise, cloves and lemongrass.
- Bring to the pan to the boil and return the meat to the pan, together with the carrots and daikon.
To Cook
- Simmer gently on low heat with the lid half on, for 2-3 hours, or until the meat is tender.
- Remove the lid and skim off any excess fat.
- Continue simmering for about 10 minutes without the lid, or until the sauce has thickened slightly.
- Taste for seasoning.
Kitchen Notes
- INSTRUCTIONS FOR PRESSURE COOKER OR INSTANT POT
* Follow the same instructions as for the stove top.
* Use about 1.5 litres (6 cups) of stock. The liquid should not completely cover the meat and vegetables.
* Cook using the manufacturer’s instructions on high pressure for 30 to 40 minutes with a slow release. - INSTRUCTIONS FOR SLOW COOKER
* Follow the same instructions as for the stove top.
* Cook on low (95°C/203°F) for 5-6 hours or high (105°C/221°F) for 4-5 hours. The timing may vary depending on the size of the pieces of meat. - VARIATIONS
* Use beef short ribs. The bones will add lots of flavour to the sauce. Use about 2 kg (4.4 lb) for the above recipe and ask your butcher to cut them into short lengths.
* Use whole baby carrots in place of normal carrots. Take care not to overcook them as they can break and disintegrate.
* Add whole, peeled baby onions. Take care not to overcook them as they can break and disintegrate.
* Add whole, peeled baby potatoes. The starch from the potatoes will help to thicken the sauce as well.
* Omit the Coca-Cola. This is used to tenderise the meat during the marinating time but you can omit it without too much effect on the final result. I would suggest adding instead 1-2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the marinade to help everything coat the meat.
* Use smaller pieces of meat. If you prefer to use smaller pieces of meat (about 4 cm / 2 inch cubes) you will need to reduce the cooking time accordingly. - SERVE WITH BREAD
This dish is traditionally served with loaves of crusty baguette which are used to dunk into the sauce. - SERVE WITH NOODLES
For a gluten-free meal, it is also common to serve this dish with flat rice noodles. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions until they have softened. Drain and lightly rinse the noodles. Place a serve of noodles into a large bowl, and ladle just enough broth to cover the noodles and top with the meat, vegetables and garnish. - OVEN & STOVE TEMPERATURES
All recipes on this website have been tested on an induction stove and/or with a conventional oven (i.e. an oven without fan). All recipes on this website use temperatures for a conventional oven, unless otherwise mentioned. Convection ovens (i.e. fan-forced ovens) are typically 20°C/70°F hotter than conventional ovens, but please check your manufacturer’s handbook. - CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.