Beef rendang
This classic Indonesian dry curry has tender meat, tons of flavor and a chili kick.
Servings: 2 approx
Calories: 842kcal
Save
Ingredients
For spice paste
- 2 shallots (2 shallots is approx ⅓ cup once diced)
- 2 cloves garlic (2 cloves is approx 1 ½tbsp chopped)
- 1 tablespoon chopped ginger (fresh) approx ½in/1.5cm piece
- 1 ½ tablespoon chopped galangal (fresh) approx ½in/1.5cm piece
- 1 stick lemongrass white part only, approx 2tbsp chopped
- 4 dry red chilis eg arbol chili or you can use cayenne
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
For rest of dish
- 1 lb boneless beef rib or chuck/shank
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- ¾ cup coconut milk
- ½ tablespoon tamarind paste/pulp softened in double amount of hot water then strained, or use 1tsp tamarind concentrate + 1tsp water for ½tbsp non-concentrated paste
- 2 cloves
- 2 makrut lime leaves (or 3 if smaller)
- ½ cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar
- ¼ cup desiccated coconut (see note)
Instructions
- Roughly chop the spice paste ingredients - shallots, garlic, ginger, galangal and lemongrass and add all to a small food processor/blender. (Depending on how strong your processor/blender is you may want to -pre-chop more or less.) Add the dry chilis and turmeric and blend everything together into a paste. If needed, scrape down the sides and blend again. It may not be completely smooth, but you want to avoid having large chunks.
- Dice the beef into medium chunks, around 1in/2.5cm dice.
- Warm the coconut oil in a medium pot over a medium heat. Add the spice paste and cook, stirring now and then, for around 5 minutes until the paste is fragrant.
- Add the pieces of beef and cook a minute or two to gently brown the meat (you just want more of a gentle color rather than a strong sear).
- Add the coconut milk, tamarind paste and the other spices - cloves, lime leaves, cinnamon stick and star anise - as well as the salt and coconut sugar. (You can also add the green part of the lemongrass stem, if you like.) Stir so that everything is well combined then cover and bring the pot to a simmer.
- Reduce the heat to a very low simmer. After around 1 ½ - 2 hours you will see the oils separate and rise to the top with a brown gravy underneath. At this point, remove the lid and increase heat slightly, if needed, to keep the mixture at a simmer.
- Continue to cook until the coconut milk has largely evaporated and reduced to just a slight oiliness and the darkened paste, about another hour. Be sure to check on it now and then as it is cooking and stir a little to try to avoid it cooking too much on one side. Remove the whole spices from the mixture, scraping back any sauce that is stuck to them into the pot.
- As the meat is cooking, gently toast the desiccated coconut either under the broiler/grill or in a dry skillet until gently brown. Add this to the meat mixture once the liquid is reduced to oiliness and mix in, then serve over rice.
Video
Notes
Traditionally the coconut you add at the end is fresh, grated coconut that you then toast but it's much harder to find so desiccated makes a reasonable substitute.
Nutrition
Calories: 842kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 49g | Fat: 64g | Saturated Fat: 42g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 138mg | Sodium: 734mg | Potassium: 1080mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 306IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 72mg | Iron: 9mg
Tried this recipe?Please consider Leaving a Review!