•A Filipino Stew Defined by Peanut Sauce
Kare-kare is a Filipino dish built around a thick savory peanut sauce. The stew typically begins with a base of oxtail, beef tripe, pork hocks, calves’ feet, pig’s feet or trotters, various cuts of pork, beef stew meat, and occasionally offal. Vegetables such as eggplant, Chinese cabbage, other greens, daikon, green beans, okra, and asparagus beans are added to the mix. The dish is flavored with ground roasted peanuts or peanut butter, onions, and garlic, colored with annatto, and can be thickened with toasted or plain ground rice.
Condiments and other flavorings commonly accompany the dish. It is often eaten with bagoong, a shrimp paste, sometimes spiced with chili or prepared as ginisáng bagoóng (spiced and sautéed shrimp paste), and sprinkled with calamansi juice. Additional seasonings are added at the table, and variants may include goat meat or, rarely, chicken. Traditionally, most Filipino fiestas feature kare-kare, and it is considered a complex dish to prepare with rich umami.
Modern Variations on the Classic
A more modern twist on the classic Filipino kare-kare uses a different dish as the main meat. Pork is one of the most economical and easiest meats to cook, and the most common meats repurposed for kare-kare are lechon (also used for lechon kawali) and crispy pata (crispy pork shank). Alternative main proteins include tofu, beef chuck, beef shank, maskara ng baka, or cartilage from the cow’s face, along with tripe.
A Disputed Origin
Peanuts, known in Tagalog as mani, were introduced to the Philippine islands from Mexico in the 16th century via Spanish galleon trades. Mexicans themselves use peanuts as an ingredient in native savory stews such as their encacahuatado. The exact conception of kare-kare, however, is disputed due to a lack of definitive primary sources.
The most often repeated history holds that kare-kare is a direct innovation of Indian curries, originating from homesick Southern India sepoys who settled in the Philippines during the British occupation of Manila after they rebelled against their British masters. Peanuts as a curry base ingredient are relatively unknown in Indian curries, though they are often used in cuisines across Maritime Southeast Asia. Curries in those cuisines, known in Malay as kari, were also made in Mindanao, leading to an alternative origin as a derivative of local forms of kari.
This leads to the final and most likely possible origin for kare-kare in Pampanga of Central Luzon, an area known for sisig and menudo. Kapampangan kari was adapted from Moro dishes, which feature fresh spices and herbs used in Malay curries but not often in Tagalog cooking. This lack, along with the use of peanuts and pork, led to the creation of the very distinct kare-kare.
Preparation Methods
The oxtail, with the skin on, is cut into 2-inch lengths, while the ox tripe is boiled until tender. Sometimes pieces of ox feet or shins are added, and when the meat becomes tender, the soup becomes gelatinous. Ground roasted peanuts (or peanut butter) and ground roasted glutinous rice are added to make the soup thicker, and annatto is added to give color. The vegetables used for kare-kare include young banana flower bud or “heart” (puso ng saging), eggplant, string beans, and Chinese cabbage (pechay).
Kare-kare is often served hot with special bagoong alamang (sauteed salted shrimp paste). Vegan and vegetarian versions emphasize the use of peanuts and coconuts to create the umami.
This explanation is adapted from Wikipedia and is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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