Beef kharcho with rice and sour plum

Equipment

• Heavy 4-5 L / 4-5 qt pot
• sieve
• ladle
• bowl
• knife.

Before you begin

US cup = 240 ml; tablespoon = 15 ml; teaspoon = 5 ml. Use listed gram weights for consistency; weights are raw or dry unless described as cooked or drained.

• If tkemali is unavailable, add 15 ml / 1 tbsp lemon juice at the end, then adjust in small additions. It supplies acidity but cannot reproduce the plum flavor. This is an adaptation, not an identical replacement.

Make it work

• If tkemali is unavailable, add 15 ml / 1 tbsp lemon juice at the end, then adjust in small additions. It supplies acidity but cannot reproduce the plum flavor. This is an adaptation, not an identical replacement.

Ingredients

• 700 g / 24.7 oz Beef chuck, trimmed, in 3 cm cubes
• 200 g / 7.0 oz Onion, finely diced
• 20 ml / 0.7 US fl oz Neutral oil
• 25 g / 0.9 oz Tomato paste
• 1800 ml, plus more as needed / 60.9 US fl oz Water
• 80 g / 2.8 oz Long-grain white rice, dry
• 60 g / 2.1 oz Walnuts, finely ground
• 40 ml, then adjust / 1.4 US fl oz Tkemali sour plum sauce
• 3 cloves (about 9 g / 0.32 oz) Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tsp / about 2 g Ground coriander seed
• 1/2 tsp / about 1.85 g Ground blue fenugreek, optional
• 2 Bay leaves
• 1 tsp, then adjust / about 6 g Fine salt
• 1/4 tsp, or to taste / about 0.25 g Chili flakes
• 20 g / 0.7 oz Fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped

Step-by-step method

1. Brown the beef in batches
   Pat the cubes dry. Heat oil in a heavy 4-5 L / 4-5 qt pot over medium-high heat. Brown beef in two batches for about 6-8 minutes per batch, turning to color two sides. Transfer to a plate. Lower the heat if the browned residue begins to blacken.
2. Build the soup base
   Add onion to the same pot and cook over medium heat for 7-9 minutes, stirring. Add tomato paste and ground coriander; stir for 1 minute. Pour in a little of the measured water and scrape up the brown residue, leaving any burnt patches behind.
3. Make the beef tender first
   Return beef and its juices. Add remaining water, bay leaves and salt. Bring to a gentle simmer, skim if needed, and partially cover. Cook for 75-110 minutes, until a cube yields easily to a fork. Add hot water if the beef stops being submerged.
4. Cook the rice without over-thickening
   Rinse the rice, drain and stir into the tender beef soup. Simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. The grains should be cooked but separate. If the soup becomes too thick, add hot water in 100 ml / 3.4 fl oz increments.
5. Add the tart and aromatic finish
   Mix walnuts with a ladle of hot broth in a bowl, then stir back into the pot. Add garlic, tkemali, optional fenugreek and chili. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Taste before adding more sauce; a sweet supermarket sauce will give a different result from tart tkemali.
6. Rest, adjust and serve
   Discard bay leaves and fold in fresh coriander. Rest off the heat for 10 minutes. Taste for salt and acidity, then serve in warm bowls. Rice absorbs liquid during storage; loosen leftovers with water before reheating thoroughly.

Cook’s notes

If tkemali is unavailable, add 15 ml / 1 tbsp lemon juice at the end, then adjust in small additions. It supplies acidity but cannot reproduce the plum flavor. This is an adaptation, not an identical replacement.

Storage & reheating

• Cool promptly in shallow portions, ideally within 1 hour. Refrigerate at 4 C / 40 F or below; use within 24 hours. Reheat only once to 74 C / 165 F throughout, stirring or checking the center as appropriate.

Allergens

Contains walnuts (tree nuts); check purchased sauce labels.

Approximate nutrition

Per serving: 377 kcal · Protein 26 g · Carbohydrates 18 g · Fat 23 g.

Approximate per serving of the complete recipe. Brands, substitutions, cooking losses and portion sizes affect the figures.