Spicy Beef Stew Recipe

Ever since my friend made me a bowl of this stew, I was hooked on the taste faster than you can say moo. Our Sweet Potato Cake was taking longer to bake than anticipated, and when she made lunch for herself, she gave me a bowl to stave off my blues. (Or maybe she knew I wouldn't stop bugging her until I got my own bowl...) It was a bowl filled with the softest, most tender beef ribs with kimchi and shiitake mushrooms, and flavored with a spicy broth with a deep unami kick. The broth was thick and flavorful, almost like it was meant to be sold at a ramen joint. 

She graciously passed me the recipe, and we eventually turned our attention back to the cake that we were baking. But I couldn't get this spicy beef stew out of my head, and I had to make it again - and soon. I hadn't had half the ingredients in the original recipe, and as the year draws to a close, I should be curtailing my personal belongings so I don't have nightmares in a few weeks' time about packing. But still, I couldn't just give it up. I made a trip to the Asian grocers at Clayton - if you can't find an Asian product there, it doesn't exist. It took a while to gather the ingredients, until the store assistant let me on that while gochujang and kimchi could be found on the Korean shelves, dashi belongs in the Japanese section, and doubanjiang is Chinese.  

Dashi concentrate (left), doubanjiang (right, top), gochujang (bottom, right)

The multiculturalism of this stew threw me for a loop; I thought it was a traditional Korean stew!, until I figured that why stress over something like that? As someone with the bigger picture in mind once said "who cares if it's a black cat or a white cat, as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat." If the combination of ingredients from several cultures is what it takes to fill my pot with a low-effort, highly-addictive broth, I'll embrace that. In many ways, this pot of stew showcases the pride of Melbourne as a melting pot: it's a city with an eclectic mix of cultures. There's a place for everybody, and the fusion of ingredients from one another's cuisine creates a new take on a traditional dish. 

Spicy Beef Stew

Makes 8-10 servings
Adapted from Make Food Eat Food

I've tried both radish kimchi and regular cabbage kimchi, and enjoyed either. As with most stews, the recipe is very flexible and ingredients like meat or vegetables or mushrooms can be added in any proportions you like. The original recipe has a lot of steps and ingredients, which I've simplified to make into a one-pot, no-fuss recipe. 

INGREDIENTS
1kg beef short ribs 
One onion, peeled and sliced 
10 cloves of garlic, smashed 
4 tbsp gochujang 
3 tbsp doubanjiang 
2 tbsp dashi concentrate 
1 cup of kimchi 
300g dried shiitake mushrooms, sliced or whole 

1.6L boiling water
Ramen-style noodles (optional)

STEPS: 
1. Lightly season the beef with salt. About half an hour to 1 hour before you start, soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in a large bowl. 

2. Set your stockpot over high heat, and pour a layer of oil into the pot. Add the beef short ribs in a single layer and cook until browned on all sides. Add onion and garlic and stir until lightly browned. 

3. Add gochujang, doubanjiang and dashi. Pour the hot water into the pot, until the water covers the beef. Add the mushrooms. Scrape the bottom of the pot to release any flavoured brown bits.  

4. Let the stew come to a boil before reducing the flame to a simmer. Cover and let simmer for 3-4 hours, until the beef is thoroughly soft and breaks apart easily. Top up more water periodically as necessary. 

5. Add the kimchi and let simmer for half an hour before serving.