Beef Rendang

Rendang is a spicy meat dish which originated from the Minangkabau ethnic group of Indonesia, and is now commonly served across the country. One of the characteristic foods of Minangkabau culture, it is served at ceremonial occasions and to honour guests. Rendang is also commonly served among the Malay community in Malaysia, and is also popular in Singapore, Brunei, the southern Philippines and southern Thailand. Rendang is traditionally prepared by the Indonesian and Malaysian community during festive occasions such as traditional ceremonies, wedding feasts, and Hari Raya (Eid al-Fitr). Culinary experts often describe rendang as: 'West Sumatran caramelized beef curry'. In 2011 an online poll by 35,000 people held by CNN International chose Rendang as the number one dish of their 'World’s 50 Most Delicious Foods (Readers' Pick)' list.

Ingredients

•     1 teaspoon salt
•     1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
•     1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
•     1 inch ginger roughly chopped
•     4 large cloves garlic roughly chopped
•     4 large shallots roughly chopped (about 7 ounces)
•     chili pepper flakes to taste (I used about 3 tablespoons)
•     2 tablespoons vegetable oil
•     2 pounds beef shanks or shortribs cut into large cubes
•     2 stalks lemongrass white part only, smashed
•     4 kaffir lime leaves
•     1 inch galangal sliced into coins
•     2 packs freeze dried coconut cream rehydrated in 2 cups  of warm water, or 1 can coconut milk
•     1 tablespoon palm sugar brown sugar can be substituted

Instructions

1.     Add all the salt, coriander, turmeric, ginger, garlic, shallots, and chili flakes to a food processor and run until there are no clumps left and you have a smooth spice paste. You'll need to scape the bowl down a few times.

2.      Add the oil to a heavy bottomed pot and heat over medium high heat until shimmering. Fry the beef in batches, allowing each surface to brown before turning. Transfer the browned beef to a bowl and repeat with the remaining meat.

3.   Add the lemongrass, lime leaves and galangal to the hot oil and fry until fragrant. Transfer to the bowl with the browned beef, leaving the oil in the pot.

4.    Turn down the heat to medium low, and then add the spice paste. Fry, stirring constantly until very fragrant and most of the moisture has evaporated (about 10-15 minutes). If the paste starts burning, reduce the heat and add a bit of water. Add the coconut milk and palm sugar, and then return the beef and herbs to the pot, stir to combine the turn the heat down to medium low and loosely cover with a lid (you want some steam to escape). Stir the rendang periodically and simmer for 3-4 hours until the meat is very tender.

5.     Once the meat is tender and most of the liquid has evaporated (about 4 hours), remove the lid and turn up the heat. You'll need to stir the mixture constantly to prevent it from burning, but you want to evaporate as much liquid as you can without burning the meat. At this point there should be quite a bit of oil in the pot from the meat so you're essentially frying the sauce and concentrating the flavors.

6.    The rendang is done when there is almost no sauce left and the meat is dark brown. Ideally you'll let this sit overnight for the flavors to evenly distribute into the meat. During this time, the meat will turn chocolate colored and the flavors will deepen. Serve the beef rendang with steamed rice.

Categories: Side Dish