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Beef stew a la House of Kimchi

Beef stew a la House of Kimchi

Inspired by the soupy sweet and spicy beef stew served at the food court in a mall named in honor of boxer Muhammad Ali.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Keyword Beef stew
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 7 hours 15 minutes
Total Time 7 hours 30 minutes
Servings 6 people

Equipment

  • Slow cooker

Ingredients

Beef

  • cooking oil
  • 1 ½ kilograms stewing beef (3.3 pounds) short ribs, brisket, shortplate, crest or shank, or a combination of two or more of these cuts
  • 6 cups bone broth

Spices

  • 6 to 8 cloves garlic
  • 2 shallots or 1 whole red onion
  • 2 thumb-sized pieces ginger rinsed, scrubbed, and sliced (no need to peel)
  • ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 4 to 5 bird’s eye chilies
  • 2 bay leaves

Seasonings

  • 3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste) the amount depends on how hot you want the dish
  • 6 tablespoons soy sauce
  • ¼ cup white sugar or more, if you have a sweet tooth
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar

Garnish

  • finely sliced scallions
  • toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

  • Rinse the beef, pat dry with a kitchen towel and cut into two-inch cubes.
    Browning beef in pan
  • Heat and brush a non-stick frying pan with oil and lay the beef cubes in a single layer.
    Browned beef in pan
  • Brown the undersides of the beef before turning them to brown all sides.
  • Transfer the browned beef cubes to the slow cooker and pour in the broth.
    Pouring broth over beef in slow cooker
  • Add the ginger, shallots (or red onion) chilies, garlic, peppercorns and bay leaves.
    Adding ginger, shallots, chilies, garlic and bay leaves to beef in slow cooker
  • Stir in the gochujang, sugar, soy sauce and rice vinegar.
    Adding gochujang, sugar, soy sauce and rice vinegar to beef in slow cooker
  • Cover the slow cooker, turn on HIGH and cook for two hours.
    Beef stew a la House of Kimchi in slow cooker
  • Turn down the heat to LOW and cook for another five hours.
  • About an hour before the cooking time is up, taste the cooking liquid and adjust the seasonings. You may want to add more soy sauce (or salt to prevent the stew from turning too dark) or sugar, or both.
  • Scoop out the beef, transfer to shallow bowls, ladle in the thin sauce, and sprinkle with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds.
    Beef stew a la House of Kimchi
  • Serve with rice. Optionally, serve the thin sauce on the side as broth.