🍲 Kare-kare

Name: Kare-kare
Total time: 210 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Philippines · Luzon
Ingredients: 1.5 kg oxtail, cut into pieces; 250 g peanut sauce; 1 onion and 4 garlic cloves, chopped; 1 tbsp annatto seeds soaked in 3 tbsp warm water; 2 eggplants, cut into chunks; 1 banana blossom, sliced; 300 g bok choy; 2 tbsp oil, salt; Bagoong (shrimp paste) to serve

Origin: Philippines · Luzon

595kcal

per serving · 350 g

170kcal

per 100 g

42 gProtein12 g / 100 g

35 gFat10 g / 100 g

21 gCarbs6 g / 100 g

Kare-kare is a Filipino stew of slow-braised oxtail in a thick, golden peanut sauce with eggplant, banana blossom and bok choy. The sauce is mild and nutty, coloured with annatto, and deliberately under-seasoned: each bite is eaten with a dab of salty fermented shrimp paste called bagoong. It is served with steamed rice and is a classic of fiestas and Sunday lunches.

Diets

✓

No porkfor halal, the meat must be halal-slaughtered

✓

Gluten-freeno wheat, barley or rye in a typical recipe

✓

Dairy-freeno milk, cheese, butter or yogurt in a typical recipe

✓

Low-carb6 g carbs per 100 g

✓

High protein12 g protein per 100 g — 28% of the calories

Not vegetarianbecause of: oxtail, bagoong shrimp paste

Not veganbecause of: oxtail, bagoong shrimp paste

Allergens

Contains (in a typical recipe):

⚠ Crustaceans ⚠ Fish ⚠ Peanuts ⚠ Soy

What it is made of

oxtailpeanut sauceeggplantbanana blossombok choybagoong shrimp paste

Recipe

6 servings210 min

Ingredients

1.5 kg oxtail, cut into pieces
250 g peanut sauce
1 onion and 4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp annatto seeds soaked in 3 tbsp warm water
2 eggplants, cut into chunks
1 banana blossom, sliced
300 g bok choy
2 tbsp oil, salt
Bagoong (shrimp paste) to serve

Method

Simmer the oxtail in salted water for 2½–3 hours until tender; keep 1 litre of the broth.
Fry the onion and garlic in oil, add the strained annatto water and the oxtail.
Stir in the peanut sauce and the broth and simmer for 15 minutes until thick.
Add the banana blossom and eggplant and cook for 8 minutes, then the bok choy for 2 minutes.
Serve with rice and a little bagoong on the side.

How to make it lighter

Chill the broth and lift off the fat before making the sauce.
Load the bowl with extra vegetables and take a smaller piece of oxtail.
Use bagoong sparingly — a teaspoon is enough to season a portion.

History

Kare-kare is strongly associated with Pampanga, a province known for its cooking, though several origin stories exist and none is certain. Some link the name to the word curry, but this is debated. Today it is a celebratory dish across the Philippines.

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Similar dishes

Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →