Beef Rendang (Rendang Daging)

Rendang is one of the most popular Indonesian dish. It a spicy meat dish which is originated from Minangkabau, Sumatra. It is very popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, even in here in Netherlands. In 2011, based on a poll by 35.000 people, CNN established that  Rendang is the number one dish of "World's 50 most delicious foods". 

Rendang is cooked using meat as the mean ingredients, with a lot of spices and coconut milk. Cooking rendang is really really time consuming because it needs hours to finish the whole process. Basically, the meat is slowly cooked with coconut milk and all the spices in low heat for hours until the meat is tender, the coconut milk start become oily, and almost all the liquid is gone. It needs a lot of patience and effort. But trust me it's worth it. I think that's why the price of this dish is never cheap. :-)

Last week, out of nowhere, I really wanted to eat rendang. I couldn't stop thinking about it. Beef rendang with hot steamed rice complete with  cassava leaves, gulai, and green sambal.  I used to eat it in Padang Restaurant in Indonesia. It is so spicy but irresistible. My husband loves it as well. We used to buy those menu on our favorite Padang restaurant. Yum !! I really miss that restaurant. I really want to eat rendang but it is so pricey and not as spicy as rendang that i ate in Indonesia. Beside, there are only a few Indonesian restaurants which sell a good rendang and the price is much more expensive.

But hey! My mother in law can make a good rendang as well. She learned it from her mother in law who is originated from Aceh. So, i called her, ask the recipe, buy the ingredients, and start to do the magic. Yippie!! 

Actually, her recipe require some ground toasted shredded coconut and turmeric leaves. But i skip that part because it is not easy to find turmeric leaves in Netherlands and she said it is fine to skip the toasted shredded coconut as well. Next time when I have my own turmeric plant, I will definitely use it. I added fried potato into the rendang as well due to the economic reason.

Ingredients :

• 1 kg beef, cut into 3 x 3 cm cubes. (I'm using biefstuk/ round steak meat because it's easy to find in nearby buthcer. My mother in law said I can use daging gandik. I think it is beef chuck or beef tenderloin)
• 150 grams (about 13) chili pepper, remove the seeds
• 5 medium shallots
• 7 cloves of garlic
• 4 candlenuts
• 2 bayleaves
• 1 lemongrass, bruised
• 2 kaffir lime leaves 
• 2 cans (800 ml) coconut oil
• 1 1/2 cups (about 400 ml) water
• 1/4 tsp tamarind paste
• 1/4 tsp ginger powder
• 1/2 tsp galangal powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 5-6 tbs vegetable oil
• 300 grams potato, peeled and cut into big chunk
• 2 cup vegetable oil

Preparation : 

1. In a big pan, preheat the oil.
2. Fry the potato until golden brown. Set aside. 
3. Using a blender, blend together chili pepper, shallots, garlic, and candlenuts until become a paste. Add some oil if needed to make the process easier. 
4. Remove the leftover oil from the pan and reserve about 5 tbs oil.
5. Add the spice paste into the pan and saute the paste until fragrance.
6. Add about 3/4 can of coconut milk, lemongrass, bayleaves, kaffir lime  leaves, tamarind paste, galangal, turmeric, and ginger powder into the paste.
7. Stir them well and simmer in medium-low heat until the oil start to separate from the spice mixture.
8. Add all beef chunks into the pan, and stir them well
9. Add the rest of coconut milk and water into the pan
10. Stir them well for about 10 minutes
11. Simmer the beef and let it cooked in medium low heat for at least 2 hours or until the beef is tender, almost all the water is evaporated, and the oil start to separate from the mixture. Stir it carefully during the process. 
12. 30 minutes before it's done or when the liquid is reduced about a half, add the fried potato into the pan. Stir again, and let it cooked for another 30 minutes. 
13. Serve it hot with hot steamed rice and sambal.