Lemongrass Beef Stew

Ingredients

6-8 stalks of fresh lemongrass*

1 head of garlic

1 large knob ginger

Coconut oil

8 shallots,

2-3lbs stew beef, chuck roast preferred cut into 2” cubes (you could also use lamb, short ribs or even oxtail)

24oz beef bone broth

2 whole cinnamon sticks

1 bunch of carrots, halved and cut into 2” chunks

2 cups of chopped bok choy, chopped into 1” pieces (optional)

1 bunch of scallions, cut into 2” chunks

1-2 heads of cilantro, chopped

Red Boat fish sauce

Tamari, Soy Sauce or Coconut Aminos

Maple syrup

Freshly ground black pepper

Fresh lime

Optional:

2-6 small green or red Thai green chilies, cut into small slivers

Fresh limes leaves, cut into small slivers (these are incredible in this dish but hard to find!)

Toasted coconut flakes, chopped peanuts or freshly roasted cashews

ground clove, allspice or cinnamon

Note:

*Dried lemongrass cannot be substituted

Directions:

Create the base of the stew

Start by peeling the outer, drier layers of the lemongrass, cutting off a couple inches from the tops and bottoms of each piece so you are left with just the inner, fresher, greener parts of the lemongrass.

Chop each piece of lemongrass into small rounds.

Roughly chop the entire head of garlic.

Skin the ginger and chop into small pieces.

Add the lemongrass to a Vitamix or strong blender (like a Ninja) and blend on medium to high speed until the lemongrass is finely ground. Then add the garlic and ginger and blend until you have a chunky paste.

Meanwhile, sear each piece of beef in small batches in a cast iron pan on all sides making sure not to overcrowd the pan. (For detailed instructions on searing meat for stew, see this link).

Place the seared pieces of beef stew into the dutch oven or pot you will cook the stew in. After all the meat has been seared, let the cast iron pan cool down for a few minutes. Then add the lemongrass, ginger and garlic paste to the juices from the meat with a substantial amount of coconut oil to the cast iron pan and sauté on medium to low heat, stirring often until the aromas are released and the lemongrass has softened, about 10 minutes. (Ghee could also work, but you will need a considerable amount of either so I use coconut oil here). You don’t want the mixture to brown or burn, so watch the heat and add more coconut oil as needed to the pan.   

Meanwhile, add the beef broth to a smaller separate pot over low heat to warm it up. (It’s best to add warm broth, not cold, to the seared meat.)

After about 15 minutes of cooking the lemongrass, ginger and garlic paste, add a little bit of broth to the pan and cook for another 5 minutes. Add just enough broth to cover the paste.  You might do this more than one time to soften up the lemongrass. If your lemongrass was very dry, you may need to add the broth sooner in the process so it doesn’t brown.

Then you will place the entire cooked mixture of the aromatics and the broth, back into your Vitamix or high speed blender and blend again until it is a soft, smoother paste. Add this mixture to the pot with the beef and mix well so that each piece of beef is covered with the paste and let it sit for a few minutes.

Add the warmed (but not boiling) broth to the pot with the beef along with 2 cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce to a simmer on medium to low heat for about 3 hours (depending on the cut you used, could be 2-4 hours.) Look for small bubbles on the surface of the liquid, making sure not to BOIL the beef. {Again, see more here on making stew.}.

While the beef is stewing, prep your the veggies

Peel and quarter each shallot. Skin and chop the carrots into 2” pieces. Wash and chop the bok choy into chunks, separating the thicker white parts from the leafy tops. Cut the scallions into 2” pieces (keeping them rather large).

If using, slice both the chilis and lime leaves into thin pieces. For a milder stew, use 1-2 chilis at max.

After the beef has been stewing for at least one hour

Add 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce/tamari/coconut aminos and 1 tablespoon of maple syrup.  Add a few cranks of freshly ground black pepper, a pinch of salt and the chilis and lime leaves if using.

After the beef has been stewing for about 2.5 hours or once it is getting quite tender…

Add the quartered shallots and cook until they begin to soften, about 10-20 minutes.

Then add the carrots and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

Once the meat is fork tender, add the bok choy and cook for another 5-8 minutes, just until the white parts have softened but the greens are still bright.

Turn the heat off and add the scallions to the pot with the lid on, let them wilt into the stew.

Add another tablespoon of fish sauce, tamari/soy/coco aminos and maple syrup.  You may add more of each to your taste preference, along with more black pepper, some freshly ground cinnamon (taste first however) and even a dash of clove or allspice.

Add abundant amounts of cilantro at the very end, reserving some for garnishing.

Serve your stew!

Serve with fresh rice, coconut rice, congee or quinoa or simply eat on its own!

Garnish with fresh cilantro and a squeeze of fresh lime.   

Optionally you could also use fresh toasted coconut flakes as a garnish, chopped peanuts or freshly roasted and chopped cashews.