Recipe: Perfect Vietnamese beef stew (Bo Kho)

Vietnamese beef stew (Bo Kho). Bo Kho is a spicy and flavorful Vietnamese beef stew that makes for a pretty epic bowl of noodle soup when you've maybe had your fill of pho or are looking for something a little different. I've had Bo Kho at only a couple of places over the years. Vietnamese bò kho (beef stew) is packed with tender, fall-apart braised chunks of beef loaded with herbs, aromatics and a delicious broth that will have you coming back with more Vietnamese baguette!

It is not so different from a traditional French pot au feu, but it is spiced in a traditional Vietnamese manner, fragrant with lemongrass, star anise and cinnamon. When the meat is fork tender, carrots are added to complete the dish. If you love beef stew, you definitely need to check out this Bo Kho recipe - this Vietnamese beef stew has all the flavors of a traditional beef stew with additional aromatics from lemongrass and star anise to give it another dimension of flavor. You can cook Vietnamese beef stew (Bo Kho) using 17 ingredients and 6 steps. Here is how you achieve that.

Ingredients of Vietnamese beef stew (Bo Kho)

1. You need 500 g of beef cubes (preferably the one with some marbling).
2. Prepare 2 tsp of tsp sugar.
3. You need 1/2 tsp of chicken stock powder (can be skipped).
4. You need 1 tsp of five spice.
5. It's 1 tbsp of minced garlic.
6. Prepare 1/2 tbsp of grated ginger.
7. It's 1 tbsp of soy sauce.
8. It's 2-3 stalk of lemongrass (smashed and cut into 2-3 pieces).
9. You need 2-3 of star anise.
10. You need 1/2 tsp of cinnamon powder (or 1 stick).
11. You need 2 tbsp of tomato paste.
12. Prepare 170 ml of (1/2 a can) coconut water.
13. It's 3-4 of carrots (cut to chunks).
14. You need 2 cups of water/beef stock.
15. You need 1/4 tsp of pepper (or to your liking).
16. You need 1 tbsp of oyster sauce (optional).
17. You need 2 tbsp of oil.

Vietnamese Beef Stew, or Bò Kho, was one of the very first dishes my mother-in-law taught me to cook after seeing the disastrous results when left on my own. My first attempt at Bò Kho resulted in an impenetrable thick stew with chewy, borderline inedible, meat. I had the flavor right but everything. One of my favourite dishes in Vietnam, bò kho (beef stew) is a hearty, spicy and aromatic broth with diced beef, carrot and lemongrass.

Vietnamese beef stew (Bo Kho) step by step

1. Marinate beef with sugar, ginger, (half portion of the garlic), soy sauce, 5 spice, pepper, and chicken powder. Marinate for at least 20 mins (longer is better)..
2. Heat the oil on the wok or frying pan. Stir in star anise, lemongrass, the remaining portion of garlic, and cinnamon stick/powder until aromatic..
3. Stir in beef cubes and brown the beef..
4. Transfer the beef to pressure cooker or casserole pan (or any sauce pan that has thick bottom). Add in tomato paste, coconut water and beef stock..
5. If using pressure cooker, cook for 20 mins. If using normal stove, bring the stock to boil, cover and reduced to low-medium heat, cook until meat is tender (maybe 40-60 mins)..
6. Stir in the carrots, cook until carrots are tender. Taste and adjust the flavour. Add oyster sauce for a richer taste (this step is optional). Turn off the heat, the beef stew is now ready to serve!.

Bò kho can be eaten on its own with a warm baguette for dunking or served over noodles, and is almost always accompanied by half a dozen types of fresh herb. Bò Kho is a popular national classic Vietnamese Beef Stew. The key ingredients include beef (sometimes people like to add oxtail or tendons Like most stews, Bo Kho is even more flavorful the next day. This beef stew tastes rich, packed with flavors & fragrances, yet it doesn't make you feel. If I counted which recipe I get the most requests for, it'd probably be bo kho (Vietnamese beef stew).