Tamarind Beef Curry

Name: Tamarind Beef Curry
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or canola oil; 1 1/2 pounds beef sirloin (cut into thin strips); 1/2 yellow onion (chopped finely); 3 garlic cloves (minced); 1 stalk fresh lemongrass (chopped finely); 1 star anise; 1 cinnamon stick; 1 cup canned coconut cream (full fat or reduced fat); 1 tablespoon tamarind paste; 12 ounces green beans (trimmed and halved lengthways); 1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce; 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leave; cooked jasmine rice; optional 1/2 tablespoon light brown sugar

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A one pot meal beef dish recipe with homemade curry sauce, made of coconut milk, tamarind sauce and garlic. This Tamarind Beef Curry is so fragrant and the sauce has a great balance of both sweet and sour flavors.

Tired of the same curry taste? Try this curry beef dish that is made without curry paste. This beef is flavored with homemade curry sauce that is made from tamarind paste, coconut milk and other ingredients that you can find in your pantry.

A one pot meal beef dish recipe with homemade curry sauce, made of coconut milk, tamarind sauce and garlic. The sauce is so fragrant and has a great balance of both sweet and sour flavors.

Fast and easy comfort meal. This Tamarind Beef Curry can be ready in about 30 minutes! Tamarind is a sour, dark fruit that is often used to make desserts, candy, salad dressing and is often used in savory dishes. When combined with sugar, tamarind gives the perfect balance of sweet and sour flavor. You can find fresh tamarind at any grocery market. For this recipe, I used a 100% tamarind paste that I purchase from my local Sprouts. It’s much quicker to make and I can save the remaining paste for later use in the fridge. You can use the same paste to make delicious Thai recipes, such as Pad Thai or use it as salad dressing, like this Crunchy Asian Slaw with Cabbage, Mango, Carrot and Tamarind Sauce

For this fragrant beef curry, I used top sirloin steak because it’s so versatile, juicy and flavorful. It has very little fat and no bones, which make it one of the easiest meats to prepare for stir fry. I thinly sliced the meat and season it well with black pepper before stir frying it in a wok or pan.

To make I also use brown sugar to add sweetness to this curry sauce / tamarind sauce to achieve a deeper, richer flavor of the dark caramel sauce. This Tamarind Beef Curry can be made in a big batch and may be store in the fridge for up to 2 days. Enjoy this curry with jasmine rice, and feel free to add bell peppers or other vegetables as curry dishes are a risk free entrée to play with.

One great thing about making a dish like this at home instead of ordering it while out is that you can play with the amount of sweetness. For my husband I can scale it way back, or simply adjust it to be more sweet for the kids. It’s difficult to do so at an Asian restaurant, when you usually only have controls of a spice level.

Curry paste can be great but similar to a pasta sauce it can taste so much better to create it on your own. There’s the pride and creativity that goes into making your own, and it often pays off. Hopefully you enjoy this recipe and add it to your list of go-to Asian food recipes.

5 from 6 votes

Tamarind Beef Curry

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

25 mins

Fragrant beef curry with tamarind paste, coconut cream and green beans.

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Asian

Author: rika agustini

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or canola oil
1 1/2 pounds beef sirloin cut into thin strips
1/2 yellow onion chopped finely
3 garlic cloves minced
1 stalk fresh lemongrass chopped finely
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup canned coconut cream full fat or reduced fat
1 tablespoon tamarind paste
12 ounces green beans trimmed and halved lengthways
1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leave
cooked jasmine rice
optional 1/2 tablespoon light brown sugar

Instructions

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok over high heat. Stir fry the beef in batches until browned. Transfer to a plate. Set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok over medium high heat. Cook onion until soft, add garlic, lemongrass, star anise, and cinnamon stick. Stir fry for about 3 minutes or until fragrant.
Add coconut cream and tamarind paste and cook for about 3-5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly. Optional: Add 1/2 tablespoon light brown sugar to add sweetness (or use more according to your liking)
Return the beef sirloin into the wok, add green beans and stir fry for about 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat and serve immediately with jasmine rice.

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Food to Love

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18 Comments

Candy

Oct 26, 2018 at 9:37 am

One of my sons would totally enjoy this dish. Going to have to surprise him and make it for him

Sarah Bailey

Oct 26, 2018 at 10:35 am

Now this is a curry that sees to be right up my other halves street! I bet he would absolutely love it – I think I might have to and make it for him one night soon! Thank you.