Kung Hei Fat Choi! East Meets West Braised Beef

Happy Lunar New Year!  Braised Beef has been a staple in Chinese restaurants in the Philippines so for Chinese New Year I have decided to share my recipe for Braised Beef.  But one thing unique in this recipe is a fusion of East and West since I used red wine for braising.

You need:

half a kilo of beef cubes (brisket makes the best beef cut)
2 cups of red wine
salt according to taste
6 tablespoon of cooking oil
1 teaspoon of ginger cut into thin strips (julienned)
half an onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, crushed and diced
3 cups of beef broth
1/2 cup of soy sauce
2 tablespoon of sugar
2 pcs star anise
1 carrot, sliced

and a lot of patience

Marinate the beef in red wine and salt and leave in the fridge for 24 hours.

The next day, strain the marinade from the beef thoroughly.  Keep the marinade for braising later.  In a large and shallow pot with a cover, fry the beef in cooking oil and make sure to have both sides browned.  The secret is to fry them far apart (about an inch) from each other so that there is even heat distribution to the beef pieces.  Fry them in batches if the pot can not accommodate frying the beef all at once.  Add more oil if it dries out.  After the beef has been fried put them in a plate and set them aside.  Do not line the plate with paper towel so that you can use that beef flavor that would settles down on the plate.  Trust me that is the good part.

On the same oil that you used for frying, saute the aromatics. Starting with the ginger until fragrant, then the onions until transparent and lastly the garlic.  Let it sizzle for a minute.  Bring the beef (and any drippings that is on the plate) back into the pot and saute with the aromatics.  This would be a great time to scrape that beef and marinade that settled in the pan during the frying process.  Season with soy sauce and sugar.  Put in the marinade, star anise and beef broth and let it boil.  Cover the pot and lower the heat.  I let it go down to simmering heat.  This is now the start of the slow braising process.  I allowed about 4 to 5 hours or until the beef is tender, stirring it constantly every hour.  The slow cooking also allows the alcohol to evaporate.  The test is when you pinch the beef with a fork it easily pulls apart.  On the last hour of braising, put in the sliced carrots.

Serve on top of steaming hot rice and enjoy.  Pair it with your favorite red wine.

Beef Stir Fry

Happy New Year!

My first recipe for 2014 is a quick and easy dish that I have done when I have gone home late from the office.  You just need to marinate it before hand so that the flavor penetrates the beef.

You need:

400 grams of beef tenderloin cut into strips

for the marinade
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

For stir frying
3 tablespoons of cooking oil
2 cloves of garlic - crushed
half of a piece of onion - diced
1 tablespoon of ginger - minced
half a stalk of lemongrass - minced
1/2 teaspoon of ground coriander seeds
one red chili cut into strips
1 tablespoon of parsley
a pinch of sesame seed

1. Marinade the beef with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder and leave in the fridge.  I made mine overnight.  I would recommend to put in a bit more salt since you won't put any more salt during the cooking process.

2.  To cook, heat the oil in a saucepan (or wok if you have one.) once heated put in the onions until semi transparent.

3.  put in the garlic and ginger.  At this point the kitchen will smell very very fragrant, in an oriental restaurant kind of way.  do not over cook the garlic as this will become bitter.

4.  As soon as the garlic becomes fragrant put in the beef and stir fry for about 5 to 7 minutes.  When it dries out put in half a cup of water.

5.  put in the chili and coriander and let it simmer until the water dries out again.

6.  Lastly, take it out from the fire and add the parsley and sprinkle the sesame seed on top.

Best served over steaming hot rice.  I had mine with an ice cold can of Heineken.

Enjoy!