Asian-Style Beef Stew

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven on the stove on medium heat. Add the canola oil, and let it come up to temperature.

Season the beef with salt and cracked black pepper, then add the beef to the pot, being careful not to crowd the beef pieces. Work in batches if you have to. Brown and caramelize each side of the beef cubes. Remove seared beef to a plate and finish searing the rest (if cooking in batches). Once all of the beef is browned, with the beef in the pot, add the onions and give a good stir. The onions will release some moisture which will allow you to scrape any of the fond from the bottom of the pot.

Once the onions have sweated down a bit, and are translucent, toss in the garlic, star anise, chili flakes, and cinnamon. Give that a good stir and cook for a few minutes to release the awesome aroma. Seriously, take in that aroma.

Next add the brown sugar, and give this a good stir. It should dissolve rather quickly. Next, add in the fish sauce, and again another stir. This is when my kids asked, “What’s that smell?”. They should be accustomed to that smell by now, trust me.

OK, now it is time to add in the beef stock. Pour it in, stir, and let it come to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for about 1 1/2 hours total. After about 1 hour of cooking the beef stew, add the carrots and give another stir. Taste the broth and season with salt and pepper at that time. It should be sweet, aromatic, and Asian-flavor infused.

During this time, make the mashed potatoes. Into another large pot, add cold water. Peel your potatoes, cut them into cubes, and place them in the water making sure the water covers the potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, and cook until the potatoes are fork-tender. This will take 10-20 minutes depending on the size of your potato cubes.

Drain the potatoes, return them to the pot, and cook them again on medium-low heat to remove any excess water. Then you can either mash them in the pot, or run them through a ricer. Regardless, once they are mashed, add the butter and milk, and season with salt. Taste, and season or adjust to your liking. Set them aside until you are ready to use them.

When the beef is about fall apart tender, and the carrots are tender, it is then time to serve. To a plate, spread out some of the mashed potatoes, then ladle on the Asian style beef stew. Make sure you get plenty of carrots and beef, and pick out any of the star anise and cinnamon as you will not want to eat those!

This might look like a standard beef stew, but trust me, it is way more than that. The flavor profile is similar to a Vietnamese pho, but in the comfort of a beef stew. Trust me on this one. It is pretty darn delicious.