Cookbook:Smore (Eurasian Beef Stew)

This is an Eurasian dish, not to be confused with the American dessert made with toasted marshmallows (s'mores).

Marinating

 * 300 g beef shank
 * ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
 * 2 tablespoons ground pepper
 * 1 teaspoon salt
 * 1 teaspoon sugar
 * 2 tablespoons vinegar
 * 4 tablespoons dark soya sauce
 * 2 tablespoons oil
 * 420 ml water

Cooking

 * 3 onions
 * 5 cloves garlic
 * 1 thumb-sized piece ginger, julienned
 * 10 cm piece cinnamon, rinsed
 * 100 g small carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally
 * 3 potatoes, peeled and quartered
 * 1 tomato, quartered
 * Spam (optional)
 * Chicken hot dogs (optional)
 * 1 sprig coriander leaves, leaves plucked

Marinating

 * 1) Wash and cut beef into 2.5 cm chunks.
 * 2) Drain in colander.
 * 3) Combine beef with bicarbonate of soda, pepper, salt, sugar, vinegar and dark soya sauce.
 * 4) Leave for 30 minutes to marinate.

Cooking

 * 1) Grind onions and garlic together.
 * 2) Soak carrots and potatoes in water.
 * 3) Heat oil in a pot. When hot, fry ground onion and garlic, shredded ginger, and cinnamon until the onions are brown and fragrant.
 * 4) Add marinated beef. Fry until meat changes color.
 * 5) Add water and simmer until meat is tender. Stir occasionally to prevent meat from sticking to pot. Add more water if gravy is too thick, and season accordingly.
 * 6) Add carrots and cook for 5 minutes.
 * 7) Add potatoes and cook until soft.
 * 8) Add tomato. If you like, you may add a tin of Spam luncheon meat, cut into thick slices or chicken franks at this step.
 * 9) Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.