Freddie has taught me a lot about the different Hawaiian fish species, and how they are best eaten. He also makes a killer Oxtail Soup. Here’s the straight forward instructions.
Freddie:
Ingredients:
- Sam’s Club oxtail in vacuum sealed package
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup sea salt
- 2 – 5 pieces dried star anise, depending on how much you like the taste of anise
- Knorr chicken base to taste
- Chinese parsley
- ginger
Optional sides:
- won bok or napa cabbage
- choi sum
- kai choi or mustard cabbage
- peanuts
- shiitake mushrooms
- kim chee base
- gochujang sauce
Sam’s Club sells oxtails in a vacuum sealed package. Two packs will feed up to five depending on the people eating! Main ingredients besides the oxtail are: sea salt 1/4-1/2 cup, five to eight pieces dried star anise, Knorr chicken base to taste, Chinese parsley and ginger ( as much as you like ).
If you have a 10 quart pressure cooker, cooking time is around one hour and thirty minutes, until oxtails are tender. If not, a regular pot will do, but cook time will be more than three hours. Fill pot around half way or enough water to cover oxtails. Bring to a hard boil and add salt, star anise, and a piece of crushed ginger. Cook until tender.
Once tender, use the Knorr chicken base to season your broth. You can also add more water at this time as some may have evaporated. Grate remaining ginger, more the merrier. FYI, use a spoon to clean the skin off of the ginger. Chop Chinese parsley.
Other optional sides are: won bok or napa cabbage, choi sum, kai choi or mustard cabbage, peanuts, and shiitake mushrooms.
Always remember to taste as you cook and never add too much salt or seasoning!
Adding kimchi changes the flavor. If you want, can add kimchi base and gochujang sauce for a bit of a kick.


That kimchi version looks delicious 😋. Perfect for the cool weather we’ve been having.
Thanks for reading Alan. You cook a lot? My wife loves oxtail soup but we don’t cook much so we occasionally get it at various take out places. 🙂
I don’t cook much but I like to eat 🤣. My wife makes it occasionally in the Instant pot. I think we’ll try the kimchi paste next time 😁
I pictured you being a great cook since you’re a Super Dad. 🙂
i made it here in cali. good but imho dont need that much anise. couple pieces will do. plenny ginger tasted good with cilantro from our garden. tanks for da recipe. hope you survived the nasty weather!
Hey Deano,
Thanks for the feedback on the recipe, I’ll make a note that regarding the amt of anise needed for most palates.
The long lasting storm affected everyone here. I prepared for heavy rains but the strong wind driving rain into our doorways, and the power outages caught me by surprise. I’m now looking into Power Stations / Banks, but companies don’t ship ’em to HI so we gotta just settle for what’s in the stores here.
take care,
scott