vietnamese style tomato beef soup

Nothing beats a hearty tomato soup to stave off the winter chill...or what's left of it as the cold wind propels us along to summer. Most cuisines have some variation of it, whether it's the minestrone or solianka or the Vietnamese Bo Kho.

I make this often enough that I thought I should write the recipe down instead of looking it up every time.

Ingredients
Essentials
Curry powder: I use a Chinese mix, but almost every curry mix is different so find one you like
Onion
Tomatos or tomato paste
Beef: brisket, or chuck steak works very well too

Nice to have
Fish sauce: the presence of fish sauce defines this as Vietnamese, but it's not essential
Pepper
Lemongrass
Bay leaf
Chinese five spice powder: there are a number of spices that are not usually present in curry, in particular star anise and a higher proportion of cinnamon
Garlic
Vegetables: carrot, radish, potatos, parsnip, celery are some ideas

1. Cut everything into 1-2cm size cubes
2. Marinate the beef in curry powder, fish sauce, five-spice powder and pepper. This is the most important step, especially if you're Asian and don't like the taste of gamy beef.
3. Brown onions and garlic, then brown the beef on all sides
4. Add water and throw in all the vegetables. Add the tomato paste, lemongrass and bay leaf
5. Simmer for 1.5-2 hours (the beef will start getting coarse after this). Skim the oil and fat off.
6. Add salt and more pepper to taste