Oxtail Kare-Kare with Hand-Roasted Peanut Sauce and Homemade Ginisang Bagoong

Method

1. Soak the oxtail in cold water for 1 hour, pat it completely dry with kitchen paper and season with the salt. Heat part of the searing oil in a heavy 24 cm pot on medium-high heat and brown the oxtail for 10 min, pieces not touching, turning until every side is deep brown. Work in batches if the pot is small. That brown crust is where the broth gets its depth.

   Add in this stepOxtail, cut into segments 700 gCoarse sea salt 1 tspVegetable oil (searing and bagoong) 1¼ tbsp

   medium-high heat

2. Pour off the fat and add the water, the onion cut in half, part of the garlic (whole cloves), the bay leaves and peppercorns. Scrape up the browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon and bring to the boil on high heat, about 12 min. Skim carefully, turn down to low heat, set the lid ajar and simmer for 2 h 30 min, until the meat comes away from the bone easily.

   Add in this stepWater 2 LOnion 1Garlic cloves 2.4Bay leaves 1Whole black peppercorns ½ tsp

   high heat→low heat

3. Toast the raw peanuts in a dry 20 cm pan on medium-low heat for 9 min, shaking often, until evenly golden brown, then tip them out to cool. Toast the glutinous rice in the same pan for 5 min until deep brown, cool it and grind to a fine powder. Blitz the peanuts in a grinder or blender until they become a smooth, slightly oily paste.

   Add in this stepRaw skinned peanuts 90 gGlutinous rice 2½ tbsp

   medium-low heat

4. Put the annatto seeds and the annatto oil in a small pan on low heat for 3 min. When tiny bubbles form around the seeds and the oil turns deep red-orange, turn off the heat and strain, discarding the seeds. If the oil gets too hot the seeds scorch and turn bitter, so keep the bubbles gentle.

   Add in this stepAnnatto (achuete) seeds 1½ tspVegetable oil (for annatto oil) 3 tbsp

   low heat

5. Lift out the cooked oxtail and strain the broth through a fine sieve. Ladle off as much fat as you can, return the broth to the pot and boil on high heat for 8 min until reduced to 750 ml. A reduced broth gives a much deeper sauce.

   high heat

6. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to the boil and set a bowl of iced water beside it. Blanch the long beans (6 cm lengths) on high heat for 2 min and plunge them into the iced water, then blanch the eggplants (5 cm pieces halved lengthwise) and bok choy (halved lengthwise) for 1 min 30 sec and chill them the same way. Drain well. The ice bath keeps the colours vivid.

   Add in this stepLong beans or green beans 120 gLong Asian eggplants 1½Bok choy 2

   high heat

7. Heat two thirds of the annatto oil in a wide pot on medium-low heat, fry part of the garlic, minced, until fragrant and pour in the reduced broth. Loosen the peanut paste in a ladleful of broth and stir it in, sprinkle in the toasted rice powder a little at a time, add the fish sauce and simmer for 12 min. Once the sauce coats a spoon, add the oxtail and simmer 6 min more so it takes on the flavour.

   Add in this stepGarlic cloves 1¾Fish sauce 1½ tsp

   medium-low heat

8. In a small pan, heat the rest of the searing oil with the rest of the minced garlic on medium heat until golden, then add the shrimp paste, brown sugar and vinegar and stir-fry for 3 min. It is ready when it darkens and the raw fishy smell turns savoury. Serve the kare-kare with the vegetables arranged on top and a drizzle of the remaining annatto oil, with the bagoong and rice alongside.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil (searing and bagoong) ¾ tbspGarlic cloves 1¾Raw shrimp paste (uncooked bagoong alamang) 3 tbspBrown sugar 1 tspCane vinegar or rice vinegar 1 tsp

   medium heat