Thai-Style Shredded Beef (DF)

Standard disclaimer: I make no claims to authenticity of the food I cook, especially when it’s food I didn’t grow up with. My goal is always to share what I learned in my take and link to primary sources from experts. My main pursuit is knowledge over ego.

This recipe stems from two main pursuits.

1. A craving for something that could at least remind me of the incredible kua kling at Fish Cheeks in NYC (knowing there is no chance of coming close to a true copycat of their mastery).
2. Something I could prep in a few minutes, toss in the oven at 300F and largely forget about.

I first had the kua kling at Fish Cheeks back in January, and was blown away. I hadn’t seen it on any menus before, and now I was getting hit with a perfectly balanced beef dish that was as rich as it was spicy, as salt as it was tangy.

Naturally, I wouldn’t shut up about it and set about to learn what made it so special. That led me to this recipe for Prik Gaeng Pak Dtai (Southern Thai Curry Paste), which led me to acquiring a lot of ingredients I had never used before, which led me to making this vibrant curry paste in my molcajete.

So, I looked for a shortcut and found this kua kling powder by Ros Dee and decided to give it a shot.

It was a bit flatter in taste, as we might expect, but with some tweaks I figured I’d be a solid path to satisfying both goals in a single go.

That led me to this recipe last week, largely on a whim that worked out well-enough to re-create for a second batch three days later after we tore through the first.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs of chuck roast cut into 2-3 inch cubes
• Long way (a lot of effort, but definitely a difference)
  • Prep this recipe Prik Gaeng Pak Dtai (Southern Thai Curry Paste)
• Shortcut way (much less effort & money, can get pretty close):
  • 1 packet of Ros Dee kua kling powder
  • 1 large shallot
  • Small bunch of cilantro (about 16 stems w/leaves)
  • 2 limes
  • 2 3-4 inch pieces of lemongrass
  • 1-2 tbsp fish sauce (start with 1 tbsp and taste/add as you’d like)

Process

1. Pre-heat oven to 300F / 150C
2. Make braising liquid
   • Prep ingredients:
     • Dice shallot
     • Cut the bottom half off of the cilantro stems, but leave the top half of stems + leaves in-tact (stems are good for the flavor, but I didn’t want to use whole stems)
     • Cut limes in half to juice
     • Sliced lemongrass pieces into thin rings
   • Blend until smooth (herbs & veg may separate from liquid when it’s blended, that’s ok)
     • Shortcut:
       • Kua kling powder
       • Shallot
       • Cilantro
       • Lime juice
       • Lemongrass
       • 1 Cup of water or stock (if using stock, factor that in with fish sauce for salt levels)
     • Longer way:
       • Prik Gaeng Pak Dtai paste
       • 1 Cup of water or stock (if using stock, factor that in with fish sauce for salt levels)
3. Prep the braise
   • Add beef chuck roast to a dutch oven or roasting dish
   • Pour braising liquid over the beef
     • Note: If the beef isn’t all the way covered by liquid, add some water to cover (don’t need to worry much about mixing it together)
   • Cover with lid slightly ajar or foil with a small vent in a corner
4. Braise
   • Cook for 2-3 hours until shreddable
     • You can check each hour to make sure it has enough liquid to cover
5. Shred & final seasoning
   • When it’s shreddable, remove from the oven and shred
   • Add fish sauce and adjust to taste
     • Note: If it’s too salty, can try adding more lime to balance
6. Serving
   • Few ways we’ve used this:
     • As tacos with guacamole and cabbage
     • As a summer roll salad with romaine lettuce, cucumber, and carrot dressed with a peanut sauce

Have questions or feedback? I’d love to hear from you at arednotebookblog [at] gmail.com or on Twitter.