How to Cook Northern-Style Vietnamese Beef Stew (Bò Sốt Vang)
- Prep time:15 minutes
- Cook time:35 minutes
- Difficulty:Easy
Beef stew (Bò sốt vang) is incredibly delicious. If you’ve tried the Southern Vietnamese version, try the Northern style for a guaranteed delicious and authentic flavor. Let’s make this dish together with Điện máy XANH!
Ingredients for Northern-Style Vietnamese Beef Stew Serves 3
Beef chuck 1.1 lbs (500g) Red wine 60 ml Tomatoes 2 Carrots 70g(about 1 small carrot) Potatoes 70g(adjust to taste) Onion 10g Ginger 10g(about 1 small piece) Cornstarch 20g Unsalted butter 30g(Reduce salt if using salted butter) Tomato paste 15g Beef stew seasoning packet 1
Equipment
How to Choose Fresh Ingredients
How to choose fresh beef
- Good beef is bright red, with fine, smooth grain, pale yellow fat, and feels firm and springy to the touch. It should have a characteristic beefy smell.
- If the beef is dark red, with coarse grain and dark yellow fat, it’s old and will be tough. Dark red meat with white fat and a slightly fishy smell is likely buffalo meat.
- Avoid beef that is dull in color, soft, mushy, runny, or has a foul odor.
How to choose fresh tomatoes
- Fresh, clean tomatoes are red, round, plump, with thin, shiny skin.
- Freshly harvested tomatoes have a fresh taste and a green stem firmly attached.
- Avoid overripe, bruised, unevenly colored, or soft tomatoes lacking firmness; these are signs of age.
How to choose potatoes that won’t get mushy
- Buy firm, heavy potatoes with smooth, unblemished, yellow skin.
- Choose potatoes without deep dents for easier and quicker preparation.
- Avoid potatoes with bruises, holes, dark eyes, rot, or leaking juice.
- Avoid potatoes that have sprouted or have turned green; these are toxic and harmful.
How to choose fresh carrots
- Good carrots are medium-sized (not too big or too small), smooth-skinned, firm, and heavy.
- Choose carrots that are naturally orange, with green tops still attached.
- Avoid oddly shaped carrots, bruised or wilted tops, dark spots, or those that are soft when pressed.
How to tell different types of onions apart
- For a sweet onion, choose those with yellow-orange skin, more orange in color. They are perfect for soups and stews where you want a sweet broth.
- Yellow onions are also relatively sweet and readily available.
Where to Buy Fresh, High-Quality Ingredients
You can find beef, carrots, onions, potatoes, and tomatoes at the nearest Bách hóa XANH supermarket. For more convenience, shop online at Bachhoaxanh.com to choose the freshest, highest-quality ingredients.
How to Cook Northern-Style Vietnamese Beef Stew
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1. Prep the Vegetables
Wash the tomatoes, cut them into small wedges, and remove the seeds to prevent the stew from being too sour.
Once the seeds are removed, puree the tomatoes. If you don’t have a blender, blanch the tomatoes for 3-5 minutes until soft, then mash them.
Wash, peel, and cut the carrots and potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Don’t cut them too large (they’ll take longer to cook) or too small (they’ll fall apart).
Peel and wash the onion, then dice it. Peel and thinly slice the ginger. Mince the garlic.
Melt 15g of unsalted butter in a pan over medium heat. Once melted, add the diced onion and sauté until golden brown.
Add the pureed tomatoes and cook over medium heat for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat once it simmers slightly.
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2. Prep the Beef
If the beef is fresh, simply rinse it. If it has been sitting out, you need to remove any lingering odors before cooking.
Rinse the beef, then cut it into 1-inch cubes.
Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the sliced ginger. Once the water boils and small bubbles appear at the bottom, add the beef and blanch for about 1 minute to remove any odor.
How to clean and deodorize beef:
- Method 1: Roast a piece of ginger until slightly charred, peel, and crush. Rub this ginger onto the beef for 3 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.
- Method 2: Alternatively, use vinegar or white wine to rinse the beef to clean and deodorize it effectively.
See details:
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3. Marinate the Beef
Remove the blanched beef and place it in a bowl. Add 1 packet of beef stew seasoning (about 50g) and 10ml of red wine. Mix well and marinate for 30 minutes.
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4. Sauté the Beef
Add the remaining 15g of unsalted butter to a pot and melt. Add the minced garlic and sauté until fragrant. Then add the marinated beef.
Sauté the beef over medium heat for about 7 minutes until browned. Add enough water to cover the beef.
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5. Simmer the Beef
After 10-15 minutes of simmering, add the tomato mixture. Continue to simmer over low-medium heat for 60 minutes until the beef is tender.
After 60 minutes, add the carrots and simmer for another 15 minutes. Then add the potatoes and simmer until tender. Carrots take longer to cook than potatoes, so add them first.
In a bowl, mix 20g of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water to make a slurry. Add this slurry to the pot, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.
Add 15g of tomato paste and the remaining 50ml of red wine. Stir well. Cover and simmer until boiling again, then turn off the heat. Season to taste and serve.
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6. Finished Dish
Northern-style beef stew has a balanced sweet and savory flavor, a slightly thick sauce, tender beef, and aromatic vegetables.
Serve with bread, rice noodles, or rice. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days and reheated.
This recipe provides a delicious and flavorful Northern-style Vietnamese beef stew for your family. We hope you enjoy a warm and delicious meal!
