Beef massaman curry is a famous Thai beef stew that is the best of 2 worlds - it has the texture of stew with the flavor of curry. The sauce is intensely savory, thick, and luscious. Make sure you are using a good-quality curry paste (like Maesri) so you will get great depth of flavor without a lot of work.
Ingredients
- boneless beef chuck roast: 3 pound
- ½ tablespoons cornstarch: 3 piece (divided)
- kosher salt: 0.5 tsp
- ground black pepper: 0.5 tsp
- canola oil: 2 Tbsp
- Massaman curry paste: 6 Tbsp
- low-sodium beef broth: 1 cup
- unsweetened coconut cream: 1 can (13.5 ounce can)
- baby Yukon Gold potatoes: 1 pound
- water: 2 Tbsp (cold)
- lime, zested and: 1 piece (juiced)
- jasmine rice: 3 cups (cooked)
- roasted cashews: 0.5 cup
- fresh cilantro leaves and stems: 1 cup (chopped)
- medium Fresno Chili: 1 piece (sliced)
- additional lime wedges: (for serving, if desired)
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Pat beef dry with paper towels, trim, and cut into 1 1/2- to 2-inch pieces. Place in a bowl with 2 tablespoons cornstarch, salt, and pepper; toss to coat beef evenly.
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Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the beef and cook, turning often, until beef is browned on all sides, about 6 minutes (do not overcrowd the skillet to ensure browning). Repeat process with remaining beef, using any residual oil in the skillet. (Do not wipe skillet clean.) Place browned beef in an ungreased 6-quart slow cooker.
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Once all beef has been browned, lower heat to medium and add curry paste, stirring to release any browned bits from the skillet. Add beef broth and coconut cream to skillet, stirring to combine ingredients. Pour mixture over beef in slow cooker. Add potatoes to slow cooker; cover and cook on HIGH for 4 hours, or LOW for 6 hours, or until beef is very tender when pierced with a fork.
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Remove beef and potatoes to a large bowl, and carefully pour liquid from slow cooker into a heatproof glass measuring cup or bowl and allow to stand until fat settles on top of liquid, about 2 minutes. Remove fat from the surface of the liquid with a ladle and discard.
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Pour remaining liquid into a saucepan and bring to a boil, undisturbed, over medium-high heat. Whisk remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water together in a small bowl; add to boiling liquid in saucepan, whisking until mixture thickens, 2 to 5 minutes. Return meat and potatoes to thickened sauce; stir in lime zest and juice.
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Serve family-style, or place 1/2 cup rice into each of 6 bowls, spoon 1 1/3 cups beef, potatoes, and sauce mixture over rice, and garnish each portion with cashews, cilantro, sliced chile, and a lime wedge.
