Beef Pares – Kanto Style
Beef pares – kanto style is a flavorful beef stew accompanied with hot clear broth an garlic fried rice. You’ll instantly fall in love with it’s tender, fall-apart beef and delicious clear broth.
If you’re on a hunt for a real great-tasting pares, do not go to fancy restaurants. Look for “hole-in-the-wall” diners or pares houses for the real deal. That is my husband’s sage advice when I was making this beef pares – kanto style recipe.
After some tries I finally achieved, according to my husband, what it should taste like. Well, I’ll take his word for it since he’s been to countless pares houses while he travelled for work in the Philippines.
What is Beef Pares?
To put it bluntly, it’s a combination of beef stew, clear beef broth and fried rice. Chunks of beef are simmer-cook until tender in a broth of spices. The beef is then braised in a soy sauce, brown sugar mixture while the broth is saved as consommé.
How to serve
Serving pares is different unlike other Filipino stew such as beef mechado, or beef lengua. Pares, meaning “pairs”, has two main elements which are the beef stew and hot clear soup. Garlic fried rice is the third wheel in this set-up and the meal is complete. So if you plan to make it, this is the way to go!
What beef cuts to use
- I used beef shank for this recipe which is unconventional but I can’t resist the bone marrows!
- Beef briskets – these are the more commonly used cuts.
- Flanks – also works well for pares.
Making the clear broth a day ahead!
Making pares can take a lot of time to cook and prepare especially tenderizing the beef. The clear broth is the one that you can make a day ahead to cut down on the process time.
Place the beef in a large pot and submerge in 16 cups water. Simmer cook with salt and beef cubes while constantly skimming scum that rises on top. When the broth is clear and scum-free, add spices then continue cooking until beef is soft and tender.
Separate and transfer 8 cups of clear broth in a container with lid and re-heat when ready to serve. For the beef in broth, leave it in the pot and cover in the lid for cooking the next day.
Tips for an amiable experience
- I used onion leeks instead of spring onions when making the broth. Onion leeks give the broth a bit of thickness.
- You can soak the meat in water for 30 minutes before cooking to loosen excess blood.
The secret ingredient is always LOVE
You may also like
- Beef Salpicao with mushrooms is definitely one of the best way I love to cook beef! Tender, stir-fried cubed beef, seasoned perfectly.
- Beef Morcon is a must have beef dish in every party! This Filipino beef roll filled with pork fat, cheese, hotdog, boiled egg, and pickle will be the star on your dinner table.
Beef Pares – Kanto Style
Ingredients
- 1 200 g beef shank (uncut)
- 250 grams beef brisket (cubed)
- 100 grams beef fat
- 3 pcs bone marrows
- 16 cups water
- 3 tbsp salt
- 2 pcs beef cubes
- 1 tsp whole pepper corn
- 1 stem onion leek (chopped)
- 1 small onion (chopped)
- 2 pcs green chili pepper (sliced)
- 3 pcs star anise (seeded)
- 2 thumb-sized ginger (sliced)
- ¾ cup soy sauce
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch diluted in ¼ cup water (thickening agent)
Instructions
- Place beef pieces in a large pot and submerge in water. Add salt and beef cubes and boil in medium heat. Continuously skim scum that rises on top.1 200 g beef shank, 250 grams beef brisket, 100 grams beef fat
- When water is clear and free of scum, continue cooking until almost tender. Add pepper corn, star anise, onion leeks, onion, chilis and ginger. Cook until beef is soft and tender.3 pcs bone marrows
- Remove 6-7 cups of broth and transfer in a separate pot to be serve as clear soup or consommé. Set aside.
- In the pot with meat and broth, add slurry or thickening agent. Continuously mix to avoid lumps from forming.
- Add soy sauce and brown sugar then carefully stir to incorporate. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve and enjoy. Bon appetit!
