Hindi Movie Yeh Dil Kya Kare
Lakia Limthong
Now, let me state that not only was this awesome, but I got two thumbs up, with almost a bit of a giggle (because it was that good) from my father-in-law. That meant a lot to me. I also would state that you can go a number of different ways with kare-kare, but this was my take on it.
Start by adding water to a large soup pot. Add in the oxtail, and bring to a boil. When the scum comes to the surface, skim with a large spoon and discard. Continue boiling until all of the scum is removed, about 3 hours or so.
Next add in the tripe, black peppercorns, fish sauce, and bay leaf. Continue to cook at a low boil for about 1 hour, then remove from the stove and let it cool to room temperature. Once cooled, cover, and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Now you might be wondering why I put it in the refrigerator overnight. I do this, not only because my mother-in-law recommended it, but I knew that it was going to have fat from the oxtail that would surface, and I wanted to remove that for a cleaner stew.
Next, heat up a small skillet on medium heat, and add in the oil, and the annatto powder. This gives the great color to the kare-kare. Bring to a gentle simmer, then add in the onions and garlic, cooking for about 5 minutes, then add the annatto oil mixture to the stock and give it a good stir.
Next, get a stock pot out and add with water, about half way up. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add in the snake beans, and cook for a few minutes. Once cooked, add them to a bowl of ice water to blanch them. Strain and reserve them for later use.
As is true for most Filipino dishes with Spanish roots, Filipinos have made kare-kare their own. Instead of okra, cabbage and tomatoes traditional with maafe, string beans, banana blossoms and eggplant are the vegetables used to round out kare-kare. Annatto seeds from the achiote plant are used to add rich color to the dish and since peanuts lend richness but not much umami, salty shrimp paste is a necessary component.
As I mentioned earlier, kare-kare is a labor of love. Oxtail and tripe can take at least two hours to become tender enough to serve and the Instant Pot makes possible in roughly one hour what takes two to three hours to prepare on the stove.
The jury is still out for some dishes I have in mind but for kare-kare where the bulk of the cook time is for tenderizing the meat (and just a small fraction of time is for incorporating the remainder of the ingredients afterwards) the Instant Pot was made for kare-kare.
Skim the Fat: I broke up the cooking process over two days though this is optional. Oxtail is a fatty cut of meat and I wanted to skim most of this fat before finishing the dish. I pressure cooked the oxtail and refrigerated it overnight, allowing me to skim one cup of fat the next day. I did leave two or three tablespoons in the stock to help preserve the flavor and to offset the creaminess of the peanuts that would be added later. This step is completely optional but it did free me from the guilt of indulging in this dish two days in a row.
Vegetables: For the vegetables I used popular substitutions in the absence of banana blossoms and string beans (Chinese long beans). Bok choy and regular green beans work just as well here. Eggplants are a must.
Stir 3/4 cup of the peanut butter into another 1 cup of the reserved broth (remember we cooked with five cups of water) and add this to the pot. If you're using the ground rice you can add it at this time. Stir to fully incorporate the peanut butter into the stew. Taste and decide if you need to add the last 1/4 cup of peanut butter and/or more fish sauce. Add the blanched vegetables and serve with steamed white rice and shrimp paste.
Oxtail Broth: Cooking the oxtail in five cups of water will leave you with roughly 4 1/2 cups of broth after you skim the solidified fat. You will need all of this for the final product: 3 cups to add to the pot, 1 cup to stir into the peanut butter and 1/2 cup to infuse with annatto seeds.
I dont have the seeds to soak in the water for the color, but i have the powder. How much powder would I use? First time for me to make this for my Filipino friends and it is a surprise. I hope it turns out good.
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