Nilagang Baka (Boiled Beef Stew)

The weather is still gloomy as yesterday thanks to the low pressure area here in the Visayas. We live at the beach side so you can see the gigantic waves plus the strong wind that comes with it. During this kind of weather, it's just nice to sit back and enjoy a bowl of hot soup. So I've come up with a menu for dinner and that's definitely good ol' Nilagang Baka.  


Nilagang Baka or Boiled Beed Stew is literally boiling beef and adding vegetables that go with it. It's a no-brainer recipe and I strongly suggest this to beginner chefs, all you will need is the patience to tenderize the beef.


Ingredients:


1 kilo beef, cut into cubes
1 onion, chopped
1 whole head of garlic, pierced using a knife
10 black peppercorns
4 tablespoons of fish sauce (patis)
1 beef bullion ( I used knorr beef cubes)
4 large potatoes, cubed
1 bundle of pechay (Bok Choy)
1 liter of water
2 chili (mahabang sili)

Procedures:


In a large pot, heat the cooking oil and sauté garlic and onions.


Toss in the beef, peppercorns, water and fish sauce. Bring to Boil and simmer for 1 and a half hour or until the beef is soft.


Add the potatoes. At this time, you can add more water if the soup has evaporized. You can adjust the flavor of the soup by adding the beef cube. Please taste the soup first so you'll estimate how much beef bullion you will need to put.


When the potatoes are ready, add the chili and turn off the stove.


Toss in the pechay and cover for 4 minutes. (I do this so the pechay will retain it's crispiness.)


Serve hot!