Wet
Beef Rendang
Now this one takes some cooking!
The list of ingredients goes on forever, and 2 1/2 hours
cooking time only gets you to the first level of this truly
awesome dish.
The first time I encountered a Rendang was in Udjang Padang,
the capital city of Suluwaisi. Unlike the more mainstream
Indonesian or Malaysian restaurants which are fairly easy
to find now or the Thai place that seems to be on every
street corner, Padang remains a bit of an unexplored cuisine.
Quite by accident I came across a Padang café in
Melbourne earlier in the year thats the first
by chance encounter in 20 years!
Traditionally serving food in the Padang style is a bit
of a health and safety nightmare waiting to happen
or so youd think. You do not order as such
a full range of dishes arrives at your table in small bowls.
Youll find squid, fish, tripe, boiled eggs, various
meats etc each cooked in its own unique spicy sauce.
These are served close to room temperature and once
on your plate along with rice and probably some hot chilli
sambal are eaten without cutlery with the right
hand scooping with the fingers. You are charged according
to what you have taken from the bowls each piece
of meat, fish or egg is charged separately and if you wish
you can just have some of the sauce. Once youve finished,
any food still in the serving dishes is returned to the
big vats in the window.
Needless to say the Padang cafe I chanced across recently
didnt do things this way choosing to adopt
the more familiar any two dished plus rice approach.
Anyway, back to the Rendang. The first one I had was what
youd call a dry rendang: Basically you
make the wet Rendang as featured in this recipe
and then you simply keep cooking it for the rest of the
day and possibly the next one too. In a Padang restaurant
the rendang that has been cooking the longest commands the
highest price. A warm piece of dry rendang is an unforgettably
piece of food alchemy. The beef falls apart in you mouth
and the flavour is so complex it almost completely lacks
comparison with anything else. But then wet version, which
still has a sauce, is pretty damn fine too
So here goes wet beef Rendang
500-800g
beef cheap cuts are fine, but remove fat or gristle.
I found a reduced price joint that was excellent
simply cut into large chunks.
1 piece fresh ginger approximate size of a wine
bottle cork
Fresh galangal - the same size as the ginger
3 stalks of lemon grass
5 cloves of garlic
10 shallots
4 Kaffir lime leaves
2 teaspoons tamarind pulp
2 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
1 can of coconut milk
2 teaspoons of cumin
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 stick cinnamon
5 whole cloves
34 teaspoonfuls sambal oelek (not Thai chilli sauce)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 level tablespoon brown sugar
Using a food processor combine the shallots, garlic, sambal
oelek, ginger and lemon grass (remove the hard part of the
stalk and chop finely before blending. Coat the cubed beef
and leave in the fridge to marinate for at least a couple
of hours overnight would not be a problem. When ready
to cook transfer to a pan and brown for 3 4 minutes.
In another pan, heat some oil (the type is not too important)
and add the cumin, coriander, cloves and turmeric. Fry for
a minute or so, then add the coconut milk, soy sauce, sugar,
tamarind, Lemon juice, cinnamon and lime leaves. Allow to
cook until the mix begins to thicken and turns a darker
shade of brown.
Now add the coconut milk mix to the beef, reduce the heat,
cover and cook for about 2 hours stirring occasionally.
At the end of the cooking remove lime leaves. The beef should
be tender and and the sauce should be rich, brown and thick.
Serve with rice and other dishes.
Alternatively, for a dry Rendang continue to slow cook until
the sauce has completely reduced.
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