BEEF RENDANG

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lb / 1 kg chuck steak, cut into large cubes (around the size of golf balls) (see notes)


• 1 tbsp oil (vegetable, peanut, canola)


• 1 cinnamon stick


• 3 cloves


• 3 star anise


• 3 cardamon pods (or ½ tsp of cardamon powder)


• 1 lemongrass stick, bottom half of the stick only and smashed (see notes)


• 14 oz / 400 ml can coconut milk (see notes)


• 2 tsp tamarind puree, or tamarind pulp soaked in 1 tbsp of hot water, seeds removed (see notes)


• 6 kaffir lime leaves, very finely sliced (see notes)


• 6 tbsp desiccated coconut


• 1 tbsp brown sugar


• 1½ tsp salt

Spice Paste

• 12 dried chilies, soaked in boiling water and deseeded OR 6 fresh long red chillies, deseeded and chopped (see notes)


• 6 shallot / scallions, chopped


• 3 lemongrass stalks, white part only, sliced


• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped


• 1½ tbsp fresh galangal, chopped (see notes)


• 1½ tbsp fresh ginger, chopped


• 2 tbsp oil (vegetable, canola or peanut oil)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place Spice Paste ingredients in a small food processor and whizz until fine.


2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large heavy based pot over medium-high heat.


3. Add Spice Paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise and cardamon pods. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant, being careful not to burn the spice paste.


4. Turn heat up to high. Add beef and sear, stirring to sear all sides of each piece of beef until they are dark brown. The colour from the sear will add to the colour of the curry.


5. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.


6. Bring to simmer, then immediately turn down the heat to low or medium low so the sauce is bubbling very gently.


7. Put the lid on the pot and leave it to simmer for 1½ to 2 hours.


8. Remove lid and check the beef to see how tender it is. You don’t want it to be “fall apart at a touch” at this stage. If it is, remove the beef from the pot before proceeding.


9. Turn the heat up to medium and let the sauce simmer for 10 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, to reduce down to a thick sauce that coats the beef cubes. Keep an eye on it at this stage because you don’t want the sauce to burn. Beef Rendang is a dry curry and it is not supposed to be saucy, the concentrated flavour of the curry should be like a thick paste that coats the beef cubes.


10. By this time, the beef should be “fall apart at a touch”.


11. Remove from heat and serve with Restaurant Style Coconut Rice.

NOTES

1. You can use any slow cooking cut of beef for this recipe. As with all slow cooked beef recipes, the fattier beef, the juicier the meat will be when cooked. I like to use chuck, gravy beef or beef cheeks as I think these cuts have the best balance of fat and fibrous tissue.

It is best to buy one piece and cut it yourself into large cubes about the size of golf balls. Larger cubes are better for this dish because this is not only slow cooked but also cooked down to reduce the sauce to almost a “paste” like consistency and if you use small pieces of beef, they may fall apart and shred in the pot when you stir the curry. It is much easier to handle larger pieces.

2. Smash the lemongrass to help the flavour infuse into the curry. Use the side of your knife, a meat mallet or a tin.

3. You can make up the coconut milk using coconut powder and water. Coconut powder is available in the Asian section or canned vegetable section of supermarkets. It is better value than canned coconut powder, plus you can just make up as much coconut milk as you need.

4. Tamarind puree is made from tamarind fruit. It is quite tart, but not as sour as lemon. You can buy tamarind puree from the Asian section of large supermarkets in Australia (or Asian grocery stores). If you are using tamarind pulp (sticky block of dried tamarind), soak it in 2 tbsp of hot water and remove the seeds, then use as per recipe directions.

You can substitute the tamarind with 2 tsp of verjuice, OR 2 tsp of vinegar (white or brown, but not balsamic) or lemon juice plus 1 tsp sugar.

5. Kaffir Lime Leaves – there is no substitute for the earthy lime flavour you get from fresh kaffir lime leaves so I really recommend buying fresh ones. They freeze well and last for ages and are commonly found in many South East Asian dishes. You can substitute with dried kaffir lime leaves. As a last resort, you can use 1 tbsp of lime juice + the rind of 1 lime, but the flavour will not be the same.

5. This curry is supposed to be slightly spicy but not “blow your head off” spicy. You can adjust the level of spiciness to your taste.

6. Galangal is like ginger but it has a more sour and peppery flavour. If you can’t find it, just substitute with more ginger and a grind of black pepper.

7. To make this in a slow cooker, do the steps up to searing the beef in a pan then pour the contents in your slow cooker. Pour the water into the pan and bring to simmer, making sure to scrape all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan to mix in with the water, then pour the water into the slow cooker (make sure you scrape in as much of the brown bits as you can!). Slow cook on low for 6 hours (or pressure cook on high for 30 minutes). Then pour the curry into a pot and follow the recipe steps to reduce the sauce.

8. Simple Lightly Pickled Cucumber Side that goes with this well: Slice cucumbers on the diagonal and place into a bowl. For each cucumber you are using, sprinkle over 1 tsp of rice wine vinegar, a small pinch of salt and white sugar (each). Leave to lightly pickle for at least 20 minutes, up to 24 hours.

Link: http://www.recipetineats.com/

By:Nagi

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