Kare Kare

 Kare-kare or kari-kari is a popular Filipino

 dish especially in the Tagalog region. The

 Filipino version of the beef stew flavored

 and thickened in a peanut - based sauce,

 with a variety of vegetables. The most common

 cuts of beef used are tail, shank or face. A

combination of the three may be used and most

 cooks preferred to add tripe. If these are not

available you can use round or sirloin cut.  
 

The meat is first tenderized, then sauteed in garlic,

 bagoong, annatto seeds and vegetables. Peanut

 butter is added during the last stages of cooking

 to thicken the sauce and give the characteristic

 flavor of the kari-kari. Most common vegetables

used are string beans or snake beans, pechay

 or baby bachoy, eggplant and banana buds

 from the banana heart, (optional ). 

  Kare-kare is always serve with white boil rice

 and bagoong alamang on the side. Bagoong

Alamang is a paste of salted and fermented

shrimp fingerlings, it is like a shrimp paste.

 Bagoong has a strong taste for some people

 but for me kare - kare is not kare kare if

 not serve with bagoong.

Kare-kare is a Philippine stew. It is made from

 a base of stewed oxtail (sometimes this is

 the only meat used), pork hocks, calves feet,

 pig feet, beef stew meat; and occasionally

offal, or tripe. Vegetables, which include

(but are not limited to): eggplant, Chinese

 cabbage, or other greens, daikon, green

beans, and asparagus beans are added - usually

 equaling or exceeding the amount of meats.

The stew is flavored with ground roasted

 peanuts or peanut butter, onions, and garlic.

The stew is colored with annatto (extracted from

annatto seeds in oil or water), and can be

 thickened with toasted or plain ground rice.

 Other flavorings may be added, but the dish

 is usually quite plain, compared to other Filipino

 dishes as other seasonings are added at the table.

   Other variants may include goat meat or

(rarely) chicken. It is often eaten with bagoong

 (shrimp paste), sometimes spiced with chili,

 bagoong guisado (spiced and sautéed shrimp paste),

 and sprinkled with calamansi juice. Traditionally,

 any Filipino fiesta (particularly in Pampanga region)

 is not complete without kare-kare. In some

 Filipino-American versions of the dish, oxtail

 is exclusively used as the meat. A very

similar dish called Maafe (Groundnut Stew)

 is found in Mali and throughout Western

Africa and Central Africa.

 

As with many things in the Philippines, there

 are several stories as to the origins of this

 rather unusual yet distinctly Filipino dish. The

 first one is that it came from Pampanga.

Another, from the regal dishes of the Moro

elite who once settled in Manila before the

Spanish arrival (interestingly enough, in Sulu

and Tawi-Tawi, Kare-kare also remains a

 popular dish). It's a comfort food for Filipinos,

 and is a perennial family favorite in both

 local and overseas Filipino households.

Kare-kare, lengua with white sauce and pancit

 canton-bihonOxtail, with the skin on and

 cut into 2-inch lengths, and ox tripe are

 boiled until tender. Sometimes pieces of

ox feet or shins are added. When the meat

 is tender, the soup becom

es gelatinous and to this is added ground

 roasted peanuts (or peanut butter),

 ground roasted glutinous rice to make

 the soup thicker. Atsuete (annatto) is

 added to give color. The basic vegetables

 for kare-kare include young banana

flower bud or "heart" (puso ng saging),

 eggplant, string beans, and Chinese

cabbage (pechay). Kare-kare is often

served hot with special bagoong alamang

 (sauteed salted shrimp paste).  

  Out of all Asian cuisines, I have to confess

 that I am most ignorant when it comes to

 Filipino cuisine. First of all, I have yet

traveled to the Philippines to sample its

local cuisine; secondly, it���s not easy to find

 Filipino food, as outlined by Marvin of

Burnt Lumpia and this article in Los Angeles

 Times. Divina Pe of Sense & Serendipity

 is here today to share with us a Filipino

 kare kare or ox tail and peanut stew recipe.

 Divina is a professional cook, holistic

 nutritionist and aspiring cookbook author

 from the Philippines and you can expect

many delicious recipes and mouthwatering.

 food photography at Sense & Serendipity

Please welcome Sense & Serendipity to Rasa

 Malaysia and learn all about kare kare,

 a delicious Filipino stew.

I grew up with my late-father���s Chinese cooking

 and actually regretted not spending more

time in the kitchen with him. He never

encouraged me to cook but his love for

 food was contagious enough for me to

do the same thing. When Rasa Malaysia

invited me to do a Filipino dish on her blog,

I am really honored and yet surprised at

 the same time. I do eat Filipino food but

 rarely cook them at home except for the

 classic adobo. I was filled with tension

 not knowing what to make. Of course,

the restlessness shows when one of the

authorities in Asian cuisine invited you for

 a guest recipe. And one of the recipes

 that came to my attention is Kare Kare.
 

There are a several stories about the

origin of Kare Kare. First, it says the dish

came from Pampanga, which is considered

 as the culinary center of the Philippines.

 Others believe that it is a noble dish served

 to Moro elite who once settled in Manila

 before the arrival of the Spaniards. Another

 origin states that this traditional dish is

credited to the Indian curry introduced by

 Indians whole lived in the area of Cainta,

 Rizal and it is also somewhat similar to the

Indonesian dish called Gado-Gado. And the

name Kare Kare is derived from the Japanese

 word Kare which might have been

contributed by the Japanese while doing

business in the Philippines during

 the pre-colonial times���

KARE KARE INGREDIENTS:

◦3OO grams os tripe (cut in 2 inch slices) you an also use oxtail
◦250 grams beef chunks
◦1 small banana heart (sliced)
◦1 bundle of pechay or bok choy
◦1 bundle of string beans (cut into 3 inch slices)
◦1 piece eggplant (sliced)
◦1 cup ground peanuts
◦1 beef broth cube
◦1/2 cup ground rice
◦1 head garlic, minced
◦1 large onion, chopped
◦1 teaspoon salt
◦1/4 teaspoon pepper
◦1 liter of water (for boiling meat and oxtail tripe)
◦2 tablespoons oil
◦1/4  teaspoon msg or vetsin
◦3 tablespoons atsuete (dissolve in 1/4 cup of  hot water)
PROCEDURES:
1. In a pressure cooker, put in oil then saute garlic, onion until brown. Add the  beef chunks and ox tripe,  salt,  msg and black ground pepper stir fry for 3-5 minutes. Add water, cover and pressure cook for 30-45 minutes or until meat is tender.
2. Once the meat is tender,  put-in  beef broth cube, peanut butter (mix well), add anatto or atsuete extract,  stir then boiled.
3. Once it boiled dissolve ground rice or malagkit in water then put-in to thicken the sauce then add the vegetables ( eggplant, string beans, banana heart)
4. Simmer for 2-3 minutes or until vegetables are cook.
5.  Finally add the bok choy then simmer for about 2 minutes. (just add salt just to your taste preference).
6. Remove from heat. Serve with shrimp paste.
SHRIMP PASTE
1. Heat oil in a pan, saute garlic until brown.
2. Put-in shrimp paste, msg, a little bit of  brown sugar and stir until the color turn brown. Cook for 5-10 minutes.