Indonesian food has always been a mystery here in Toronto. Throughout the years several restaurants have opened but none have remained open long. As far as I know, there is only one lonely fast-food joint serving up Indonesian food in the north end, but unfortunately only has perhaps 3 items that I would say are truly Indonesian among the menu that includes Malysian, Chinese and Thai offerings. But, with this recipe you’ll be able to enjoy an Indonesian favorite!
Rendang is a popular Indonesian dish where the beef is simmered for hours in a mixture of spices until you get super tender, melt-in-your-mouth meat in a thick gravy-like sauce. The traditional mixture of spices; including galangal (blue ginger), candlenut, shallots, cloves, star anise, and chili; are the core to this yummy delight. Unfortunately, as with many traditional dishes, hours of prep with a mortar n’ pestle and low n’ slow cooking are required.
There are various resources on the interweb for traditional, from-scratch, beef rendang recipes – what we’ll show you in this article is a simplified version. It will still take time to simmer the beef, but this version reduces the prep!
Summary
Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 3 hours, 15 mins
Servings: 6 portions
Meal type: Entree
Cost: $10
Ingredients
- 2 lbs cubed stewing beef
- 2 medium onions
- 2 shallots
- 1 can of coconut milk
- 1 package of Rendang sauce
We like to use Munik or Indofood, both brands are imported from Indonesia. It is essentially a paste of the traditional ingredients that allows you to skip a good chunk of prep work and get straight to the stove.
Instructions
1. Slice onions. I like rings, because they look prettier.
2. Dice shallots.
3. Fry the onions over medium heat for 3 mins.
4. Add shallots and continue to fry until onions brown.
5. Add the beef. Fry until meat starts to brown.
6. Add the rendang paste.
7. On high heat, add cold water to cover the meat 3/4s and stir well to mix paste. Bring to boil.
8. Once boiling, reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for 1 hour stirring occasionally to ensure the food does not stick to the bottom.
9. Add coconut milk, stir to mix, leave lid partially on and simmer for 2 hours. Stir occasionally. You’re looking to reduce the broth to a thick gravy which coats and clings to the meat.
Results
Serve on a bed of rice and some fresh vegetables on the side for a complete meal! The longer the stewing beef has to simmer, the more tender it is. Feel free to try other cuts of beef and different brands of the Rendang curry.
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Tags: Beef, blue ginger, braise, braising, curry, ethnic, galangal, indofood, Indonesian, Malaysian, munik, rendang, rendang curry, spicy
