Way back in college - Mapresko (cool place) is an eatery where I and my friends used to go for lunch and chat until it is time to go back to class. It is our friend and classmate JR who introduce us to this place where we get to hang out most of the time. We never knew who the owner was but everyone was so nice and the servers (ate meaning sister is how we call them) are so cool. I used to order beef caldereta almost every day along with my cup of steaming hot boiled rice. Their caldereta is the best caldereta I have ever tasted until I learn how to cook it on my own.
This is not the first time I cooked beef caldereta but every time we have this dish for either lunch or dinner my little girl would always say Yum. Her praises are always music to my ear because you know how hard it is to feed and please the young ones.
There are so many different ways how to cook beef caldereta and this is my own version.
I used the following ingredients in this caldereta:
1 kilo of stewing beef cut into cubes it is good if there are some visible beef fat with the meat
2 potatoes cubed
1 carrot cubed
1/4 cloves of garlic crushed
1 red onion diced
2 red chilies chopped
4 green chilies sliced lengthwise
1/2 cup of soy sauce
1/4 cup of vinegar
3 tsp of cooking oil
salt and pepper to taste and a little msg.
I do not have peanut butter this time and I do not have time to ask for home delivery so I added pili nuts from the pasalubong (presents) of a friend who just arrived from the vacation in the Philippines. I used my mortar and pestle to crushed and make the pili nuts to become like a paste.
I made it really quick since F. and L. are hungry and waiting. The solution is I took out my pressure cooker for a shorter cooking time instead of boiling the meat.
I started sauteing garlic, onion, red chillis, beef cubes then I added the soy sauce and vinegar. I added water just above the meat and cover the pressure cooker. Let it boil for 20-25 minutes to allow the meat to become tender. I let the steam out of the pressure cooker then I added potatoes, carrots, and the green chili. I let it cook and boil for like 10 minutes and voila my Beef Caldereta is ready to serve with the steaming rice.
It may be a shortcut but the taste wasn't compromised.
I started sauteing garlic, onion, red chillis, beef cubes then I added the soy sauce and vinegar. I added water just above the meat and cover the pressure cooker. Let it boil for 20-25 minutes to allow the meat to become tender. I let the steam out of the pressure cooker then I added potatoes, carrots, and the green chili. I let it cook and boil for like 10 minutes and voila my Beef Caldereta is ready to serve with the steaming rice.
It may be a shortcut but the taste wasn't compromised.