Dad's Kare Kare Recipe in the Instant Pot is about one of the most Filipino dishes there is. Like most Filipino cuisine there are many varieties of the dish, varying by region and even by village. It doesn’t matter how you make it as long as it has peanuts or peanut butter.Every time Dad had this dish it was always made with oxtail. However, it can be made with goat, other cuts of beef and there is even a vegetarian version. Kare Kare is a savory stew that's standout feature is the peanut butter sauce. It is a wonderful, rich and hearty stew that is totally Filipino. Dad doesn't think there is anything else like it.
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Kare Kare is not a difficult dish to make, Dad would say it is a medium difficulty. Just about all of the ingredients can be found at the average grocery store, other than the “pink paste”. One ingredient you may be concerned about are the annatto seeds, but don't be.
These tiny red seeds are only being used for the coloring and Dad found them in the regular spice isle of his local grocery store. They were only 98 cents to boot. If you can’t find them you can substitute paprika, turmeric or a combination of the two. Just add enough until it starts to turn that reddish color we are looking for.
What is the "Pink Paste"?
That pink paste that we talked about earlier is actually “Salted Shrimp Paste”. It is not something that is mixed in when you make Kare Kare but instead It is a condiment and served on the side. Not everyone uses it, but Dad would say a solid majority of those who eat Kare Kare use it.
Shrimp paste is made from exactly what you think it would be made from, finely crushed shrimp mixed with salt that is fermented for several weeks. The Filipino version is a bright pink or reddish color and if you have an Asian supermarket in your area, they surely have it. Otherwise some higher end grocery stores may carry it in the ethnic isle.
If you can’t get it locally you can always Order it on the interwebs. If you are going to go through all the trouble of making this Kare Kare recipe for the first time I suggest you acquire some, it makes a big difference in the final dish.
What makes Kare Kare a great candidate for the Instant Pot?
Oxtail is tough, it takes a while to break it down and make it tender and delicious. In the traditional method you need to simmer the oxtail for 3-4 hours. Using an Electric Pressure Cooker, like the Instant Pot you can do it in about an hour and there is no difference in the final outcome.
"But I don't have Pechay or Banana Blossoms."
The veggies are a very important part of this dish and they vary as much as the meats. However, most of the time the dish includes eggplant, green beans and a leafy green like pechay (bok choy) and banana blossoms. Don’t stress over the veggies, just make sure you add a lot of them.
Oxtail is not the meatiest of proteins and it’s nice to have the heartiness of the veggies to fill you up. When Dad made it the bok choy at the grocery store was not looking so good so he substituted some cabbage he had left over from when he made his Instant Pot Bulalo.
Ok, let's make Dad's Kare Kare Recipe!
The process of making this Filipino stew is rather simple. The first step is to cut up the vegetables and sauté them until they are tender and then set them aside for later. The next step is to boil, or pressure cook the oxtail along with some onion. While the oxtail is cooking grab the annatto seeds and soak them in a cup of water to extract the color.
Next, grab the peanuts and crush or grind them up. While the annatto seeds are soaking you need to toast and grind up some rice. The ground rice is used as the thickening agent for the stew. Dad hasn’t tried it, but since the rice is just being used to thicken the sauce he would bet you could use some cornstarch instead.
Time to make that wonderful peanut sauce.
When the oxtail is tender you add in the water from the annatto seeds, the peanuts, peanut butter and some ground toasted rice and simmer it. Lastly you throw all of your vegetables back in the pot and let them simmer along with the rest of the stew for 10 to 30 minutes, or you can just leave it in the Instant Pot on warm for a few hours until it’s time for dinner.
Serve it along with some white rice and don’t forget to add the Shrimp Paste
. The technique for using the shrimp paste is to put a dollop on the side and add a tiny bit to each bite.
Kare Kare Recipe - Made Easy with the Instant Pot
A Filipino Oxtail Stew with a Peanut butter sauce.
3.87 from 105 votes
Print Pin
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Filipino
Keyword: filipino kare kare, oxtail stew with peanut butter
Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 1037kcal
Author: James Bennett aka "Dad"
Equipment
Electric Pressure Cooker
Spice Grinder
Saute Pan
Strainer
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Oxtail
- 1 Eggplant
- ½ Cabbage
- ¾ Cup Ground Peanuts
- ¾ Cup Peanut Butter
- 1 oz Annatto Seeds
- ½ Cup Ground Toasted White Rice
- 1 Yellow Onion
- 1 tablespoon Minced Garlic
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 8 Cup Water Estimate: Use enough to cover Oxtails
- ¼ Cup Vegetable Oil
Instructions
Chop the eggplant into rounds and then chop the rounds in half.
Remove the ends from the green beans.
Peel and cut the onion into chunks or slices.
Cut the cabbage into manageable chunks.
Set the Instant Pot onto Saute Normal Setting.
Add a "splash" of vegetable oil to the pot, just enough to coat the bottom.
Add the minced garlic, green beans, ½ of the yellow onion, eggplant, black pepper and salt.
Cook the veggies until they have softened, about 5-10 minutes.
Remove the veggies and set aside for later.
Add another splash of oil.
Add the cabbage and cook until soft, about 10 or 20 minutes.
Remove the cabbage.
Add another splash of oil.
Add the oxtail and brown them quickly, turning as needed. Only about 5 minutes.
Add the other half of the yellow onion and then pour enough water over the oxtails to cover them.
Put the lid on the instant pot and set it to manual and 38 minutes.
While the oxtails are cooking prepare the annatto seeds by placing them in a container and pouring 1 cup of water over them. This will extract the color which is all they are being used for.
While the annatto seeds are soaking put a pan over medium high heat and put the white rice in it. Do not add any oil. Stir them occasionally until you see they have browned.
Take ¾ cups of peanuts and crush or grind them up.
Take the toasted white rice and grind it to a fine powder using a burr grinder or spice grinder.
After the instant pot beeps let it sit for at least 10 minutes and then release the pressure and open it. This is a about an hour after you started the cooking.
Add in the peanuts, strain the water from the annatto seeds and add it to the pot and then add the peanut butter and stir.
Set the Instant pot to saute and adjust it to the less setting.
After 6 minutes add the ground toasted rice and stir.
After 10 minutes add in all of the vegetables and stir.
Let the stew simmer for 10-30 minutes depending on how soft you want your vegetables.
Serve or let it sit in the instant pot on warm with the lid on until you are ready to serve with a side of salted shrimp past and white rice.
Video
Nutrition
Calories: 1037kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 86g | Fat: 65g | Saturated Fat: 24g | Cholesterol: 249mg | Sodium: 1013mg | Potassium: 693mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 92IU | Vitamin C: 31mg | Calcium: 137mg | Iron: 11mg
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Not Sure about the Instant Pot?
If you are unfamiliar with the Instant Pot and would like to know more about it, Dad Got This. Dad has an entire page with information and resources for the Instant Pot.
Click Here to Learn About the Instant Pot.
Do you like Filipino Food?
Try Dad's Pork Bistek Tagalog recipe next, as long as you like onions.
