Beef Rendang

I learnt to cook this dish from a friend's aunt who was an Indonesian Chinese. In fact I learnt a lot of cooking and baking from her way back in the late 1960s. I shall be reviving her recipes on this blog. Keep a look out for it!

Ingredients:

500g beef, cut into cubes (size is up to you)

A
8 to 10 slices galangal ( 1cm thick ) ( lengkuas)
8 dried chilli or more, soaked to soften
1/2 tablespoon coriander powder (ketumbar)
1/4 teaspoon cumin powder ( jintan putih )
2 stalks lemon grass ( serai ), sliced
2 tablespoons thick tamarind juice ( assam )

Grind all the ingredients together until fine.
Marinate the meat overnight and store in the fridge.

B ( to be ground)
5 slices ginger (1cm thick )
10 small onions
3 cloves garlic

C
1 lemon grass, bruised
1 turmeric leaf ( daun kunyit)
5 Indonesian bay leaves ( daun salam )
2 tamarind skins

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Thick coconut milk from 1 and half coconut ( add 100ml water to squeeze )
Thin coconut milk ( add 500ml water or more )
salt and sugar to taste

1/4 portion of a white coconut ( skin removed and grated )
Stir fry in wok till brown and dry. Grind till fine and put aside.

Method:

1. Put marinated meat, B, C and thin coconut milk in a pot and bring it to boil.
2. Lower heat and simmer for an hour or more, stirring occasionally and checking for water level.
3. Then add half of the thick coconut milk and salt. (Do not add sugar yet)
4. When meat is about done add the remaining coconut milk and cook at medium heat till done.
5. Add sugar to taste and add ground coconut. This helps to thicken the gravy and makes it fragrant.