Hi! How’s everyone doing? It’s been raining here in Singapore recently and the weather’s perfect for just lounging in bed…or for eating Nilagang Baka for lunch in my balcony.
Here’s a picture of my balcony, by the way. Gardening has taken up so much of my time lately, that I don’t get the chance to do anything else like, say, baking or food photography. Sorry! But I do think the end results justify the effort that I have put in.
Nilagang Baka, or Boiled Beef Soup, is the perfect dish for cold and gloomy days. The hot soup plus rice combination is unbeatable in warming up those lazy bones that often plague us during rainy days.
Nilagang Baka gets its name from the way the dish is cooked. Nilaga means boiled in Filipino. Quite literally, the various ingredients are boiled for a certain period of time. It doesn’t get easier than that, does it?
The recipe that I’m sharing with you today is the one that I’m most familiar with. I cook this at least once every time I go back home. Most of the stews and soups in my province are cooked by sautéing the onion and the garlic first. While I grew up doing the exact same thing, I felt that I should modify the recipe a little bit in order to remain faithful to its name. For this recipe, I skipped the sautéing and jumped right in to the boiling/pressure cooking of the beef.
One of my friends accused me of being partial to beef tails and I must admit that I am. It’s the best, the cheapest and the most relatively-easy-to-get alternative to bone-in beef cuts. If you live in the Philippines or somewhere close to a butcher shop, you can get some beef shanks or some similar cut of beef for your nilaga. I strongly advise against using beef cubes though; the extended boiling takes a toil on the texture of meat. Plus, you would really want the bones in for a fuller-flavored soup.
There are a number of ways to cook Nilagang Baka. The standard ingredients, aside from the beef, are potatoes and cabbages. I went the whole nine yards with this recipe – saba (cardava), camote (sweet potatoes), and baguio beans (french beans) are added as well.
On a side note, for those who aren’t familiar with saba, please don’t confuse it with your regular bananas. Saba is the thicker and fleshier cousin of the normal banana. It’s commonly used in Filipino recipes such as turon, banana cue, and pochero. If you can’t find saba where you are, you can just skip it. Just don’t ever use regular bananas because they’ll turn goopy from all the boiling.
Nilagang Baka has a distinct flavor that comes not only from the saltiness of the fish sauce, but also from the sweetness of the bananas and the sweet potatoes. I confess that my tastebuds tend to lean towards the stronger side, so I always use a fair amount of fish sauce. I also add a little bit of sugar to further enhance the subtle sweetness of the soup and to complement the salty flavor of the meat.
Serve Nilagang Baka with your favorite dipping sauce (fish sauce with a slice of calamansi for me) and rice. Have a happy lunch!
Nilagang Baka
Ingredients
- 1 kg beef shanks or similar cut of beef
- 8 cups water
- 1 red onion big, about 300 grams, sliced
- 1 tsp peppercorn
- 300 grams potatoes quartered
- 300 grams camote sweet potatoes, cut in 1 inch thick pieces
- 350 grams saba cardava, cut in 1 inch pieces diagonally
- 75 grams baguio beans french beans
- 1 small head of cabbage quartered
- 1 bunch of pechay bok choy
- fish sauce and sugar to taste
Instructions
- In a large casserole, briefly boil the beef in 3 cups of water until scum floats to the surface. Remove from heat and rinse beef thoroughly under running water.
- Return the beef to the casserole and add the rest of the water to cover the beef. Add onions, peppercorn, and 2 tbsps of fish sauce. Boil the beef in medium heat for 1-2 hours or until the beef is tender.
- Once the beef is tender, add the potatoes and sweet potatoes and boil for 5 minutes.
- Lower the heat and bring to a simmer. Add the saba and simmer for a minute.
- Add fish sauce and sugar, to taste.
- Turn off the heat. Add french beans, cabbage, and pechay (bok choy).
- Serve hot.
Video
Notes
Some people don’t add sugar to the soup and instead prefers to rely on the sweetness of the saba and the sweet potatoes. Sugar is optional but in my opinion it compliments the fish sauce quite well.
Most Filipinos use fish sauce and some calamansi (lime) as dipping sauce for the beef.
Nilagang Baka – An Easy Filipino Dish
Nilagang Baka is a Filipino dish made of beef and pork. This delicious dish uses pork, Kalabasa, and Star anise. The ingredients in Nilagang Baka are seasoned with salt, pepper, and coconut milk. The process begins by blanching the beef. Then, it is rinsed to remove any impurities. Next, it is time to proceed with the recipe. Once the beef is thoroughly rinsed, it is ready for the next step in the Nilagang Baka process.
Calamansi
If you’re looking for an easy and delicious Filipino dish, then you should try Nilagang Baka. This dish is made with beef bones, which are called “buto-buto” in Tagalog. The main ingredients include mature corn, Baguio beans, and sliced papaya. You can also use chicken or pork, which can be used in a similar way to Beef Pochero.
Star anise
This delicious soup is a worthy successor of the original. It incorporates a succulent component while maintaining the light bitterness. This soup is perfect for a family meal, especially if you want to impress your guests with your culinary skills. You can make it in a slow cooker, or add one-third cup of fennel seed. Fennel seed has a similar flavor to star anise.
Kalabasa
Nilagang Baka is a Filipino dish that utilizes the succulent part of beef for its delicious taste. This recipe is a good option for a family meal or a special occasion. It can be made using a slow cooker and can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator or frozen for up to two months. If you have time to prepare the dish, try it out yourself and let us know what you think!
Pork
The Filipino dish Nilagang Baka is very popular in the Philippines. The dish is a popular takeaway item from a Filipino restaurant. The meat used in the dish is roasted to perfection and is succulent and tender. This recipe serves six people. This recipe is based on a traditional Filipino recipe. In addition to pork, you can use chicken or beef as a substitute. Chicken has a lower cholesterol content and can take on the seasonings more effectively.
Beef
A classic Filipino dish, Nilagang Baka is a delicious broth-based soup made from beef. This dish is a favorite of Filipinos throughout the year. The beef tendons and shanks are loaded with collagen, which makes them incredibly tender and tasty. Slowly cooking the beef in sweet onions and peppercorns yields a rich broth that is delicious with steamed rice. Nilagang Baka beef is the perfect meal to accompany a hearty bowl of rice.
Vegetables
The most authentic version of nilagang baka uses cabbage, Chinese cabbage, and bok choy, a small leafy cabbage variety. If you are allergic to Chinese cabbage, regular cabbage may be substituted. Black peppercorns and salt are the main condiments for nilagang baka, but you can also add star anise to give it a mild bitterness and sweet taste.
Slow cooking process
If you love Filipino food, you can learn how to make this tasty soup in a slow cooker. This simple recipe is a perfect way to try this unique Filipino dish. This recipe is perfect for a family dinner. The ingredients are easy to find and are suitable for a slow cooker. The soup is best served chilled and can be kept in the refrigerator for 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. Here is a step-by-step guide to making Nilagang Baka.
Ingredients
A Filipino staple, Nilagang Baka is a beef stew. It’s made with beef bones and vegetables. Beef fat improves the flavor of the soup, and the bones can be used as a stock. Nilagang Baka has become a comfort food for many Filipinos. Here are the ingredients for this traditional dish. And don’t forget to add a few vegetables and some boiled rice for extra flavor.
