Stewing Over Stew

I’ve been cooking a lot lately, having planned a week’s worth of meals before we headed down to Victoria Market in the city early last week. While they have all been really simple, fuss-free meals, the lunch we had on Friday has got to be one of my favourites.

Nikujaga, literally meaning meat and potatoes, is a popular staple of Japanese home cooking. Apparently restaurants in Japanese do not serve this dish, instead mothers whip it up at home, with every family having their own version.

It was the first time i was making this dish and i was rather surprised at how easy it was. I found that i had to be fairly organized in making this dish although i could work rather leisurely as i had very limited kitchen space to work with and didn’t want ingredients already chopped just lying around. So i chopped ingredients, cleaned and kept as i went along and it all worked out in a inviting pot of beef stew, filling the apartment with an incredible aroma.

The paper thin, tender beef slices went really well with chunks of potato and carrots and crunchy beans. Served over rice with a slightly sweet and saltish sauce, it made for a really comforting. tasty and hearty mid day meal.

What i really love about this stew is how versatile it is. I imagine it would go well with mushrooms and all sorts of vegetarians or even a vegetarian version, adding tofu in place of meat. This definitely won’t be the last time i’ll be making this one.

Nikujaga (Japanese Braised Beef and Potatoes) [adapted from Feast of Flavours from the Japanese Kitchen]

Ingredients
200g thinly sliced beef [i used rump, as suggested by the butcher]
2 tsp sesame oil
1 white onion, peeled and cut into wedges
4 baby potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks, and left to soak in cold water to get rid of excess starch
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
A handful of string beans, ends trimmed and cut into 4 cm pieces, blanched
300ml hot water
1 tbsp + 1 tsp mirin
1 tbsp + 1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp Japanese light soy sauce
Rice, to serve

1. Heat sesame oil over medium heat in a medium sized saucepan. Add onions and beef in, frying for about a minute till fragrant. Add mirin, sugar and light soy sauce in, stirring well. Cook till sauce is almost completely absorbed.
2. Add drained potatoes, carrots and hot water in. Bring mixture to a boil, then lowering heat and allowing it to simmer for about twenty minute or till sauce is significantly reduced and potatoes and carrots are tender. Stir in string bean and cook for another minute. Turn heat off and serve stew hot over rice. Serves 2