Bap bo xao lan draws people in with the smell of lemongrass and curry and a rich sauce coating every slice of beef. Beef weeps easily, so a slow hand in the pan leaves the meat tough and bland.
Slicing the beef shank thin and stir frying fast over high heat is the deciding step. The coconut milk goes in only when the beef is nearly done, then cooks for another 3 to 5 minutes until the sauce thickens. With rice or bread, it makes a full meal.
This batch weighs about 822g, at roughly 181 calories per 100g.
Method
Rinse 500g beef shank, drain it and cut it into thin bite sized slices.
Finely chop 40g lemongrass, 15g shallot and 15g garlic. Chop 5g chili small.
Mix the beef with the lemongrass, shallot and garlic, 10g curry powder, 15ml fish sauce, 4.5g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and 2g ground pepper. Marinate for 20 minutes.
Heat a pan, add 30ml cooking oil and fry the remaining shallot, garlic and lemongrass until fragrant.
Add the beef and stir fry fast over high heat.
When the beef is nearly done, pour in 150ml coconut milk, stir it through and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until the sauce thickens, then adjust the seasoning.
Spoon onto a plate and scatter over 15g spring onion and 20g roasted peanuts. Serve hot with white rice, bread or fresh rice vermicelli.
Tips
Beef shank sliced thin and stir fried fast over high heat keeps its bite and does not weep.
The coconut milk goes in only when the beef is nearly done, then a few more minutes bring the sauce to the right thickness.
A full 20 minutes of marinating lets the lemongrass and curry powder work into the fibers.
Split the minced lemongrass in two, half for the marinade and half for frying, since frying it all at once loses the scent.
Scatter the crushed roasted peanuts on at the last moment, since early on they soften.
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The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.