Huhuhumm, if you ever go to Japan you have to try a Japanese curry and or a beef stew, they have these bouillon cubes with such strange and complex aromas, some with apple, some with honey, some for specific types of meat, some in weird shapes, sometimes solid, sometimes liquid, sometimes in little packets, they have a bit of everything.
This one is more of a suggestion than a “go to the market and get everything” recipe, simply because you need to buy a Japanese beef stock (and yes you can find it, just look for an Asian grocery store or an online shop with Japanese products, or ask in the comments and I will try to help you find one) 😀 But I think it is still a really interesting recipe, and if you get the chance to try it at a restaurant or buy some to cook at home it is really worth it.
In this case I made it with chunks of very fatty young beef, because this kind of dish tastes better with cheaper cuts. The more expensive and leaner cuts are not as tasty and do not make such a rich broth, so grab the cheap and fatty one and let the stove do the work. Let’s get to the recipe!
Cozy Slow-Simmered Japanese Beef Stew with Tomato and Miso
I served this with some soft fluffy rice, but this can go with anything, including as a filling for sandwiches or wraps 😉
Ingredients
- Beef – 1 chunk (approx. 500g)
- Onion – 1 large
- Carrot – 1
- Celery – 1 small stalk (or 1/2 a regular-sized one)
- Garlic – 3 cloves
- Tomato – 1 can peeled tomatoes (approx. 400g)
- Beef Bouillon – 2 cubes
- Tomato Paste – 1 tablespoon
- Sake – 140ml
- Miso – 2 tablespoons
- Soy Sauce – 2 tablespoons
- Olive Oil – 60ml
- Honey – 1 tablespoon
- Black Pepper – A pinch
- Cayenne Pepper – A pinch
- Salt – A pinch
Directions
- Cut the beef into cubes, making sure they are all roughly the same size so they cook evenly.
- Finely chop the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and place them in a large pot along with the chopped or crushed peeled tomatoes and the meat. Set the pot over the heat and season the mixture with tomato paste, sake, miso, soy sauce, olive oil, honey, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- In a separate bowl, prepare the beef broth by dissolving two bouillon cubes in 500 ml of hot water (note that this depends on the brand and product, for instance, with dashi, a type of stock, you would typically use one cube, half the size of a standard stew cube, for 500 ml of water).
- Once fully dissolved, pour the broth into the pot with the meat and tomato mixture. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and let it simmer for about 2 hours. Check on it and stir occasionally, if the mixture seems to be getting too dry, add a little more sake.
- When the meat is incredibly tender, taste the broth and adjust the seasoning with soy sauce, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- And that’s it, ready to serve with some rice (usually in a separate bowl, hehehe). Bon appétit!
This recipe is a variation of the one that was on the package of the Japanese beef stock itself. The only difference is that the Japanese recipe also had cubed potatoes (which they add about 20 minutes before taking the pot off the heat) or other vegetables like pumpkin or daikon, and it has no garlic and no olive oil (they use regular vegetable oil).
Also, the typical Japanese beef stew has no tomato, it is all the same as what we have here, just without the peeled tomatoes and tomato paste, but since I had never tried this version, off I went to experiment!
And this is just my opinion, if I were making this recipe without instructions I would start with the sautéed vegetables first, then brown the beef a bit, and only then add the tomato, stock and so on, because that way we add more aroma and umami to the vegetables and the beef, but the recipe is not like that and I followed the recipe! ;D And the final result was delicious anyway 😛
This recipe is perfect if you have a slow cooker, because it is the kind of recipe that you can do in about 2 or 3 hours on the stove (depending on the size of the beef) or in 6 to 12 hours in a slow cooker.
Check the stock package before you buy. Some Japanese stew products are thick roux blocks and others are plain stock cubes, and they behave differently. If yours is a roux block and the sauce gets thicker than you like, stir in a splash of hot water at the end, or just add it near the end!
Cut the beef into pieces about 1 inch (2.5cm) wide. Too small and they dry out, too big and they take forever to get tender. Keep the heat really low, just a lazy bubble here and there. Hard boiling makes the beef tough and can make that grainy sauce even worse.
Miso does not like to boil hard for a long time, so if you want a fresher miso flavor, dissolve half of it in a little hot broth and stir it in at the end.
Like most stews, this one is even better the next day. Keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheat gently until it is steaming hot, at least 165°F (74°C), stirring now and then. It freezes really well, so doubling the recipe is never a bad idea.
If the sauce is too salty at the end (stock cubes vary a lot), add a splash of hot water or a little more tomato and a touch of honey to balance it.
This recipe for Cozy Slow-Simmered Japanese Beef Stew with Tomato and Miso was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Estufado de Carne ao Estilo Japonês foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.
Nutrition
Per Serving: 531 calories; 30 g fat; 24 g carbohydrates; 33.4 g protein.Did you try this recipe?
Let me know how it turned out for you! You can leave a comment below ;D
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