Mussaman Beef


From Thai Home-Cooking, by William Crawford and Kamolmal Pootaraksa, Penguin, 1985. ISBN 0-452-26133-3.
This is simply an amazing (albeit time-consuming) dish. There are just a ton of flavors in the goo. It's not as thick as the Mussaman I've gotten in restaurants, but the flavor is much more vibrant. Dig. \vspace{-.1in}

Ingredients


Directions

(Omit if you're using tamarind concentrate): Soak the wet tamarind in warm water for 15 minutes, or until it is soft. Press it through a sieve, making sure to press through all the pulp you can. Scrape the outside of the sieve carefully to get all the pulp, and discard the residue inside the sieve.

Cut the beef into 1/3-inch cubes. Place the beef, peanuts, and thin coconut milk in a large covered saucepan and boil gently over medium heat for 30 minutes.

Peel the potato and cut it into 1/3-inch cubes. Add it to the saucepan, stir, and cook the mixture, covered, for 15 minutes more. Remove the mixture from the heat and set aside.

Bring the thick coconut milk to a boil in a saucepan, and remove it from the heat.

Heat a wok (or frying pan), and add 1/4 cup of the thick coconut milk and the Mussaman Curry. Stir the mixture over moderate heat until it is thick and pale tan. Add the cardamom seeds. Add the rest of the thick coconut milk 1/4 cup at a time, stiffing it over high heat until the sauce becomes slightly thick after each addition.

Add this mixture to the beef mixture, and bring it to a boil. Add the fish sauce, sugar, and tamarind solution or concentrate (If you have used concentrate, add 1/2 cup warm water and stir well to mix).

This dish may be prepared a day in advance and stored, covered, in the refrigerator. It actually improves in flavor if prepared ahead. Warm without boiling.


Jim Plank

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