Bo Kho

I have made this dish twice and really liked it both times so I thought I'd share this with you. This is one of my favorite vietnamese dishes to make. It was so easy and if I can make this, anyone can. I used a Crock pot to cook this but you can use a regular pot was well. I got this recipe from this blog:

http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/

Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew)

For a 6-quart pot, you'll need:
1 lb beef stew meat
1 lb oxtails, or substitute with 1 lb short ribs or another 1 lb of beef stew meat
1 tblsp annatto seeds
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
2-inch knob ginger, cut into big slices
1 stick of cinnamon
3 star anise
1 bay leaf
2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
2 tsp Ca Ri Ni An Do (Vietnamese Indian Madras Curry Powder)
2 tblsp Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce)
2 tsp salt
6-oz can tomato paste
2 carrots, cut into 2-inch chunks
3 potatoes or more, cut into 2 -inch chunks
1 cup pearl onions, or 1 large onion, cut into 2 inch chunks

You'll need about 1 lb beef stew meat and 1 lb oxtails. Wash and set aside.


Annatto seeds provide the deep rich red color and a slight sweetness to the stew.

In a large pot on high heat, add 1 tblsp of annatto seeds to 2 tblsp olive oil. The seeds will start releasing their color. Be careful! The seeds may pop in the oil. Keep stirring until the oil turns red. Scoop out the seeds and discard.


Sprinkle about 1/2 cup flour over the beef, making sure to coat each piece. Pan-fry the beef and oxtails until each side is brown. You may have to do this in batches. I just move the oxtails to one side of the pot and stack them on top of each other. When the beef is all browned, add any remaining flour to the pot. It'll help thicken the stew.

Add two bruised lemongrass stalks, ginger slices, a stick of cinnamon, and 3 star anise pods. Also add 1 bay leaf, 2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder, 2 tsp Ca Ri Ni An Do (Vietnamese Indian Madras Curry Powder), 2 tblsp Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce), 2 tsp salt, and a 6-oz can tomato paste.

Then fill your pot about 3/4 full with water. When the water boils, turn the heat down to medium and let simmer for an hour.

Meanwhile, prepare your other vegetables. I used pearl onions because I couldn't resist how beautiful they looked. You can dice a large onion instead. Chop up 2 carrots and 3 potatoes, or more if you wish. Keep the vegetable chunks at least several inches in size as they'll simmer for a while and you don't want them to become mushy or lose shape.

Add the vegetables after the stew has been simmering for an hour. Taste and add fish sauce or salt if necessary. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let it simmer for another hour.


After simmering for several hours, the beef stew meat and oxtails should be fall-apart tender. Fish out the ginger, lemongrass, cinnamon, and star anise.

Serve with Vietnamese French bread, rice, or rice noodles.