With the onset of the rainy season that brings in colder
days and nights, this Filipino dish is so good and the favorite comfort food on
a cold weather. My secret for having a clear and tasty broth is
using beef brisket
and beef ribs part and diligently taking out the scum portion while it boils.
The bone part makes the broth tastier aside from the meaty part of the beef
that gives additional flavor. I seldom use beef cubes and lean more on using
fish sauce to balance the taste and to have a flavorful rich broth. Nilagang
Baka or Boiled Beef with Vegetables is very easy to make. Simmering the beef
brisket and ribs is the only time consuming part in creating this hearty dish.
I set an hour in a half of boiling to make the beef tenderer and juicier. My simple
rule is allot an hour of boiling and tenderizing for every one kilo of beef.
Traditional cooking requires putting a stainless spoon or fork while the beef
is getting boiled, I still do that. I also shared tips to lessen the fat
content and how to come up with a clear and tasty broth.
For me, what defines
a good Beef Broth Soup with Vegetables or Nilagang Baka is its rich and flavorful
clear broth, tender beef pieces with a bit of fat and evenly cooked vegetables.
I am not a big fan of overcooked vegetables so I always add it at the very last
part of my cooking. I usually pair this beef soup with a spicy dipping sauce made up of freshly
squeezed calamansi, fish sauce, and cut chili pieces. Totally sinful but very
indulging, a little bit of bad may be good but not everyday for me.It is a simple dish but really
filling. Since I don’t really cook beef that much, I needed to take pictures and blog about my bowl of comfort on that one perfect
Sunday brunch with my family. :)
Ingredients:
1 kilo beef brisket, chopped into chunky cubes
¼ kilo beef ribs part, chopped
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1 tsp. iodized salt
1 tbsp fish sauce
3 liters of water for the soup base and boiling process
I whole head of cabbage, trimmed, quartered and halved. Make
it in big pieces.
4 bundles of pechay, ends trimmed and rinsed well
4 medium size potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 big red onion
1 head garlic
Dipping Sauce:
Squeezed calamansi juice
Freshly cut red chilies
Fish sauce (Patis)
Procedure:
Thoroughly wash (3 times) all beef parts and cut into two
inch diameter thickness. Wash the bones and boil on a big pot along with the
cut beef briskets. Bring to a rolling boil, cover the pot and continue
simmering and tenderizing under low heat for an hour and a half. From time to
time check the top portion and skim off the scum and dispose it. Keep it
covered and occasionally check for scum that form on the side of the pot and
continuously discard it until the broth turns clear. Be diligent in removing it
to achieve a clear beef broth soup. Do not add salt or anything yet, as adding
salt will make the tenderizing part much longer. Just keep boiling the beef in
plain water until tender. If you want to lessen the fat content of the soup you can boil the beef pieces a day before and refrigerate the cooked meat, when the fat or oily part freezes scoop it out with a strainer to lessen the oil content of the dish.
When liquid reduces to half due to the tenderizing part and
the broth is clear and free from scum, add another liter of water and start
seasoning the broth. Add salt, peppercorns, onions, garlic, and bring to a boil
or the beef to fully absorb the added seasoning ingredients. After about
fifteen minutes of boiling, add in the potatoes, cover the pot and simmer for a
good five minutes or so.
Season the broth with fish sauce then add the
remaining vegetables like, cabbage and pechay and turn off the stove. Leave it
covered on top of the stove so the vegetables will be cooked just right. Once
it is ready to serve arrange the vegetables, beef brisket and soup on a large
bowl. It is great with fish sauce, calamansi and chilies for dipping sauce on
top of freshly cooked rice. Do not over season the dish as you have a choice of
adding a dipping sauce of soy sauce, fish sauce, or salt when the dish is
finally served.
A happy Sunday one pot meal and a hearty dish as well.
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