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Meat

Braised Shin of Beef with Hot and Sour Shredded Salad

The point of a stew, it should go without saying, is its flavour rather than its form. So, while the crunchy salad strips of carrot, spring onion and pepper do bring colour and beauty to this otherwise brown study, at the same time their texture and Asian-flavoured bite provide the perfect partner for the rich, aromatic spiciness of the soft-braised stew.

Serves 6

Difficulty
Easy
Preparation Time
Less than 30 minutes
Cooking Time
Over 2 hours
Bob's  Kitchen Recipe Card

Ingredients for  6  Servings

  • For the Beef

  • 2
    Onions, peeled, quartered
  • 5cm
    Piece fresh root ginger, peeled, sliced
  • 4
    Garlic cloves, peeled
  • 2 tsp
    Ground coriander
  • 3 tbsp
    Vegetable oil
  • 250ml
    Chinese cooking wine (or dry sherry)
  • 4 tbsp
    Soy sauce
  • 4 tbsp
    Dark brown sugar
  • 2 Ltrs
    Beef stock
  • 2 tbsp
    Oyster sauce
  • 4 tbsp
    Rice wine vinegar
  • 2
    Cinnamon sticks
  • 2
    Star anise
  • 1 Kg
    Beef shin off the bone, cut into large cubes

  • For the Salad

  • 3
    Carrots, peeled, cut into matchsticks
  • 4
    Spring onions, cut into matchsticks
  • 1
    Long red chilli, seeds removed, cut into matchsticks
  • 1
    Long green chilli, seeds removed, cut into matchsticks
  • 20g
    Bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped

  • For the Dressing

  • 1
    Lime, juice only
  • 4 tbsp
    Thai fish sauce
  • 1 tsp
    Caster sugar

Approximate Times

  • Preparation :
    Less than 30 minutes
  • Cooking :
    Over 2 hours

Method

  1. For the salad dressing, mix the lime juice, fish sauce and caster sugar in another bowl and dress the vegetables with this.
  2. To serve, arrange the beef on a serving platter and pour the reduced sauce over the meat. If you are using cubes of stewing steak, rather than slices of shin, you’d probably do better to use a deeper dish. Dress the top of the beef with the hot and sour shredded salad.

Notes

I advise you to make the salad at the last minute. You could use half the salad to cover a platter of Asian-style stew and let people strew more on their plates as they eat.

The beef can be made in advance. Cook the beef for 1¾ hours, then transfer to a bowl to cool (the beef can also be frozen at this point, if desired). Cover, refrigerate and store in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to use, return the beef to a casserole dish and heat gently until the sauce is just boiling. Cover and return to the oven for 30 minutes, or until the beef is piping hot. Transfer the meat to an ovenproof dish and finish as directed.