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One Pot Vietnamese Beef Stew

This was an interesting take on beef stew, it was very flavorful, and some may say more colorful than an American beef stew would be. This recipe may be more familiar to you as Bo Kho, the Vietnamese name of the dish. Vietnamese beef stew is also thinner than the American version, but they have one thing in common - they are a classic comfort food that people turn to in times of sickness or sadness.
For our recipe, we used chunks of stew meat and chunks of butternut squash. The butternut squash was a nice, unusual touch. Jeff used Coconut Sugar in this recipe, but you could use a dark brown sugar for a similar effect.
This recipe is unique in another way; it is cooked on the stovetop and then in the oven. The beef ends up extremely tender, and if added at the right time, the butternut squash retains its shape and isn’t mushy. You want to add the squash after the stew has baked for about an hour. The one pot aspect of this recipe is convenient for preparation and cleanup. This pot can be any lidded casserole dish, or a Dutch oven.
Serve this stew with a good, crusty bread or with rice if you want an extra filling meal. Everyone who tried this recipe deeply enjoyed it. The sweetness of the butternut squash was an excellent contrast with the savory flavor of the beef and the other ingredients.
Ingredients:
- 2 lb beef stew chunks
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 tsp Chinese Five Spice
- 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 2 Tbsp Lemongrass paste
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 4 Tbsp shallots
- 2 green chiles
- 4 large tomatoes, chopped
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 4 carrots, sliced thin
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 2 Star Anise Pods
- 2 Makrut Lime Leaves
- 2-1/2 cups beef stock
- 1 lb butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- Cilantro to garnish
Instructions:
- Combine beef, flour, pepper, lemongrass, garlic, soy sauce, and sugar in a bowl and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.
- Preheat oven to 325 F and have all your vegetables prepared.
- Heat up the 2 Tbsp of vegetable oil in a Dutch oven over medium. Add beef chunks and brown.
- Add the shallots and chiles and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, carrots, cinnamon stick, star anise, lime leaves, and beef stock and bring to a simmer.
- Put lid on Dutch oven and place in oven. Cook for 1 hour and then add the butternut squash. Be careful, the lid and Dutch oven will be hot!
- Place back in oven and cook for another hour. Meat should be very tender and almost falling apart.
- Remove from oven, dish up, garnish and serve.
Makes 8 servings.
Nutrition Facts
Amount Per Serving
Calories281.30
Total Fat 8.90g
Saturated Fat4.10g
Polyunsaturated Fat0.20g
Monounsaturated Fat0.10g
Cholesterol 60.00g
Sodium 589.00mg
Potassium 808.30mg
Total Carbohydrate 26.60g
Dietary Fiber5.30g
Total Sugars8.80g
Protein 25.30g
Ingredients for this recipe:
Chinese Five Spice
Starting at: $11.64
Black Pepper Medium Grind
Starting at: $5.12
Makrut Lime Leaves
Starting at: $16.73
Cinnamon Sticks (2.75 inch)
Starting at: $8.56
Organic Coconut Sugar
Starting at: $5.18
Star Anise
Starting at: $6.73
Chinese Five Spice
Starting at: $11.64
Black Pepper Medium Grind
Starting at: $5.12
Makrut Lime Leaves
Starting at: $16.73
Cinnamon Sticks (2.75 inch)
Starting at: $8.56