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Beef pares

The post about rice toppings got me thinking a lot about the times I’ve enjoyed steaming bowls of rice
and tender boiled beef topped with lots of toasted garlic and chopped onion leaves. Pares, literally
“pair”, means the combination of rice and beef. In Philippine eateries, the customer may opt to enjoy his
beef with noodles instead of rice. What characterizes the beef pares from other beef-and-rice or beef-
and-noodle dishes is the very tender meat. Cuts with lots of litid (tendon) are used to achieve a texture
that is tender and sticky at the same time. Brisket, flank and shanks are all ideal for making beef pares.

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So, it’s just boiled beef over rice? In its earliest form, yes. Back when I was in college, there was a
famous pares house on Quezon Avenue and that was how pares was served — plain boiled beef cutlets
(regular meat or offal) over rice that magically came alive when generous garnished with fried garlic,
fried onion slices and finely snipped scallions. Complimentary beef broth was served on the side. If I
have to make a guess, I’d say that the origin of pares comes from an attempt to make cheaper cuts of
beef saleable to diners looking for an inexpensive meal.

Years and years later, as beef pares became more popular and pares houses competed to come up with
versions that captured the market better, the beef topping turned into a sweet-salty stew and, in most
cases, the complimentary beef broth disappeared.

Beef pares

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Yield / servings: 3 to 4

Ingredients

½ k. of beef (brisket, flank, short ribs or shank), cut into two-inch cubes

6 cloves of garlic

1 whole onion

1 thumb-sized piece of ginger (wash and scrub, no need to peel)

1 tsp. of whole black peppercorns

1 star anise

1 bay leaf

1 tsp. of five-spice powder

4 tbsps. of soy sauce

4 tbsps. of rice wine

1 tsp. of rice wine vinegar

2 tbsps. of white sugar

salt, to taste

1 tbsp. of tapioca or cornstarch

cooked rice, to serve

toasted garlic bits, to garnish

fried onion slices, to garnish

snipped scallions, to garnish

Instructions

Place the beef in a cooking pot. Cover with water. Place over high heat and boil for five to ten minutes
or until the meat is no longer red. Throw out the water and rinse the beef to remove all traces of scum.

Rinse out the pot, replace the beef and cover with water once more. Add the garlic, onion, ginger,
peppercorns, star anise, bay leaf and five-spice powder. Pour in the soy sauce, rice wine and rice wine
vinegar. Stir in the sugar. Simmer gently for two hours or until the meat is very tender.
Halfway through the cooking, taste the broth and add salt. Do not be tempted to add more soy sauce
instead of salt; otherwise, the broth will turn too dark.

When the beef is done, scoop out the meat and transfer to a large bowl. Keep hot.

Strain the broth then pour back into the pot. Turn on the heat and bring to a simmer.

Dissolve the starch in 2 tbsps. of water. Pour into the simmering broth. Cook, stirring, until thickened
and clear.

Add the beef to the sauce; simmer for another 10 minutes.

To serve, fill a bowl with rice. Arrange several pieces of beef on top. Drizzle with a few tablespoonfuls of
sauce. Garnish with toasted garlic, fried onion slices and snipped scallions.

06-26-2014 · SEE MORE IN ASIAN COOKING, BEEF, FILIPINO FOOD, MEAT

Hello, my name is Connie Veneracion. I cook, I shoot, I write. But I don't do the laundry. I don't like
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Comments

misao says

June 26, 2014 at 8:57 pm

I love beef pares! Our iteration includes serving it over garlic fried rice and some chopped omelette as
part of the toppings.

Connie Veneracion says

June 26, 2014 at 9:43 pm

Wow, that is tasty!! I adore garlic rice. :D

Christian says

April 13, 2015 at 4:56 am

I love your website! This recipe was spectacular. I didn’t have corn starch on hand so I sauteed the
onions and garlic and added a tablespoon of flour to make a roux and then performed the second boil.

I served this dish with sinangag to my American coworkers who haven’t had exposure to Filipino food
and they loved it as well =)

Connie Veneracion says

April 13, 2015 at 8:26 am

The added flavor from the onions and garlic in the roux must have made a very, very tasty pares. :D

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