Put the beef to a boil then remove the water. This removes the floating scums making it cleaner.
Put in a pot or pressure cooker. Put the whole peppercorn and bay leaves. Add little salt and pressure cook or cook in a casserole until tender.
Once tender remove the liquid/this now beef stock and set it aside. We will put that back later. Also remove the beef and set aside
In the same pot, saut the half amount of the garlic until golden brown. Set aside. This will be our topping.
Then saut the other half of the garlic with onions, ginger and the beef. Add fish sauce to taste.
Put the beef stock back then add the bouillon cube and stir until it dissolves.
Then add star anise and bring to a simmer.
Then add the soy sauce, brown sugar to your liking. You should taste both the saltiness and a hint of sweetness.
If the taste is right for you. Then add the cornstarch dissolved in water. dissolve the cornstarch first in the water before pouring it into the pot then stir slowly until the soup thickens a bit. The soup should not be as thick as a fried chicken gravy but rather runs smoothly when you try to pour it. Then set the beef soup aside.
In a separate pan make fried rice using left over rice/cooked rice. For best results, cook rice at night before then leave it in the fridge overnight. Saut the garlic and rice. Add little drops of soy sauce to add color to the rice.
If you want to make it as authentic as the original version, you may want to serve it using a cup to mold the rice like a little hill on your plate. And then scoop that beef soup from the pot to a bowl and top it with fresh spring onions and the toasted garlic. Perfect match with the fried rice
