Slow Cooked Massaman

• 1kg/2lbs well trimmed stewing steak, I leave the chunks on the large side
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 good tablespoons massaman curry paste
• 1/2 pint chicken stock (or 1 chicken stock cube in boiling water)
• 2 handfuls of new waxy potatoes (charlotte or vivaldi type)
• 1 cinnamon stick or 2 pinches of ground cinnamon
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
• 1 tablespoon muscovado, palm or brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon tamarind paste*
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 large handful of roasted peanuts

*if you have not got this I guess you could replace with some lime juice or lime leaves

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the beef. Turn once to seal the meat until it’s browned on both sides. Tip the beef and juices into a preheated hot slow cooker on high.
2. Spoon 3 tablespoons of the thick coconut cream from the top of the can into the ‘dirty’ frying pan. Cook over a medium heat until melted then add the curry paste and cook for 1 more minute.
3. Add the sugar, tamarind paste, peanut butter and fish sauce and stir to combine, then add the cinnamon stick, bay leaves and cardamom pods.
4. Stir in the rest of the coconut milk (if it will fit) and pour this mix over the beef. If it doesn’t all fit in your pan just pour everything in to the slow cooker and mix it there. You can deglaze the pan by pouring the stock in and boiling briefly, then sloshing that into the slow cooker too.
5. Peel the new potatoes and halve them then add these to the pot too (I sometimes leave this until a bit later, after the meat has cooked a bit)
6. I like to cook it on high for an hour or two to get the heat through everything then I turn it down to low for 6-8 hours.
7. Don’t stir it too much or you will break up the potatoes.
8. 20 minutes before you are ready to eat add the peanuts then serve with plain boiled rice.