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1
Brown the Beef
10 Mins
Medium-high heat, about 190°C (375°F)
Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the beef pieces in a single layer, without crowding the pot, and brown them for about 8 minutes, turning once or twice so each side picks up a deep brown crust. Work in two batches if the pot is small. Lift the beef out onto a plate.
Do not stir the beef constantly — leave each piece alone for a couple of minutes so the crust can form; that browning is where the curry's flavour starts.
Done when: Beef is browned on most sides, with a dark crust and juices still sealed inside.
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2
Soften the Onion and Bloom the Spices
8 Mins
Medium heat, about 160°C (320°F)
Turn the heat down to medium. In the same pot, cook the onion for about 4 minutes until soft and translucent, then stir in the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute more. Sprinkle in the curry powder and tomato paste and stir for 2 minutes, until the spices smell fragrant and the paste darkens slightly. Pour in the water and scrape the bottom of the pot to lift up all the browned bits.
Frying the curry powder in the oil for a full 2 minutes takes away its raw, dusty taste — if it smells sharp, it needs another minute.
Done when: Onion is soft, spices smell warm and toasty, and the liquid is a rich brown.
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3
Simmer the Curry Until Tender
50 Mins
Gentle simmer, about 95°C (200°F)
Return the beef to the pot with any juices from the plate. Pour in 200 ml of the coconut milk and the carrots, stir, and bring to a gentle simmer. Put the lid on, leaving it slightly ajar, and simmer for about 50 minutes, stirring now and then, until the beef is fork-tender and the sauce has thickened to a glossy brown that coats a spoon.
Keep it at a lazy simmer, not a rolling boil — a hard boil toughens the beef and splits the coconut milk.
Done when: Beef yields easily to a fork, the sauce is thick and brown, and the meat is steaming hot right through, well past the 63°C (145°F) safe minimum for beef.
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4
Boil the Taro in Coconut Milk
25 Mins
Gentle simmer, about 95°C (200°F)
While the curry simmers, put the taro wedges in a second pot with the remaining 200 ml of coconut milk and the remaining salt, adding just enough water to barely cover them. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for about 25 minutes, until the taro is completely soft when pierced with a knife and the coconut milk has turned creamy around it. Drain off any excess liquid, keeping a spoonful of the creamy milk to spoon over the taro.
Start the taro about 25 minutes before the curry finishes so both pots are ready at the same time — taro that sits too long goes gluey.
Done when: A knife slides through a wedge with no resistance, and the taro is soft and steaming all the way to the centre.
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5
Add the Greens and Serve
5 Mins
Simmer, about 95°C (200°F)
Stir the chopped island cabbage into the curry and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, just until the leaves wilt and turn bright green. Taste the sauce and adjust the salt. Spoon the taro onto warm plates, ladle the beef curry and its brown sauce beside it — not on top, so the taro stays creamy — and scatter the spring onions over the whole plate.
Serve the curry beside the taro, as in the photo: the taro is there to scoop up the sauce, and burying it under the curry hides the very thing the dish is named for.
Done when: Greens are wilted but still bright; the plate holds glossy brown curry, pale creamy taro and green vegetables side by side.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve hot on warm plates, with the taro creamy from its coconut-milk boil and the curry sauce spooned around it, and let everyone mix the two together as they eat.
Vanuatu
2h 10m
France
Vietnam