February 7, 2007
Beef Rendang - Round One
I named this post “Beef Rendang - Round One” because I would like to make it again. I believe “Beef Rendang” means “Spicy Beef Stew” - whereby cubed beef is cooked in thick coconut milk and aromatic spices.
The good bites:
1. The end result for my Beef Rendang looks like my Dried Chicken Curry, doesn’t it? It did not look quite like the type you find in restaurants and I think the reason is because I used yellow curry powder instead of red curry powder.
2. I probably also need to cook it in the wok a bit longer so that the gravy will dry out. When I had leftovers the next day and heated the Beef Rendang in an oven at 450degF for 10 minutes then put it on broil for another 5 minutes, the meat browned a bit more (see picture below) . There was no sacrifice in taste in the leftovers. In fact, I felt they tasted even better!
The better bites:
1. The texture of the gravy was great! In fact, this time I had spent more time pounding the ingredients to make the paste and the efforts paid off. I really need to polish up my pounding and grinding technique and to have the patience to pound and grind small amounts of ingredients instead of throwing them all into the mortar because that will cause the ingredients to (a) “fly out of the mortar” and (b) be cushioned by themselves in a soft bed.
2. I would rate the spiciness level of this Beef Rendang Recipe as medium intensity (my spiciness threshold is only average). This Beef Rendang goes very well with plain white rice and a simple vegetable dish.
3. Compared to the similar Dried Chicken Curry recipe, the difference here was the additional ingredients that were pounded and ground into a paste: lemongrass and galangal. This gave the Beef Rendang gravy its slightly rough texture.
The best bites:
1. I can use this recipe to take part in this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by the founder (woohoo!) of Weekend Herb Blogging, Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen. :)
This is the third time I am using lemongrass as the herb for submission I hope that is a-ok (they came in bundles of 4-5 stalks you see).
2. Lemongrass has many benefits. It is a good cleanser that helps to detoxify the liver, pancreas, kidney, bladder and the digestive tract. As it is able to reduce uric acid, cholesterol, excess fats and other toxins in the body while stimulating digestion, blood circulation, and lactation; it helps alleviate indigestion. Would you believe that lemongrass is also known to improve the skin by reducing acne and pimples and acts as a muscle and tissue toner? Eat that!
Here is the Beef Rendang Recipe:
Ingredients (Serves 3):
- 1 lb beef, cut into approximately 1.5″ cubes (I added a few dashes of meat tenderizer too)
- 3 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 inch cinnamon bark
- 3 cardamom
- 3 pcs kaffir lime leaves (I used lime peel)
- 2 cups coconut milk
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 pcs tamarind skin (I used 1 tsp of tamarind paste)
Paste Ingredients:
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 inch ginger
- 8 dried chillies, pre-soaked in warm water
- 3 slices galangal, cut into smaller pieces
- 2 stalks lemongrass, remove tough outer layer and use only the whitish part
- 3 cloves large shallots
Cooking Method:
1. Mince paste ingredients in an electric blender then pound them in small portions until they become a paste.
2. Heat up oil and fry the cinnamon bark, cardamom, paste ingredients and kaffir lime leaves until fragrant. Use medium heat and add more oil if necessary so that the paste ingredients will not burn.
3. Add in beef, coconut milk, curry powder, salt and tamarind skin and cook until the gravy thickens.
4. Serve with plain white rice.
Cook’s Note:
If you find the gravy too spicy, then add some sugar and mix well. I find that sugar reduces the spiciness of a dish.
Bite This!
More recipes:
Beef Rendang - I Wish I Made This
Sushi Maru - For A Quick Japanese Meal Fix
Prima Taste Restaurant Food Review - Part 2 of 2
Beef with Broccoli and Yellow Pepper Stir Fry Recipe
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February 7th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
Mmm. Sounds very good. I know what you mean about putting too much in for the mortar and pestle. Also, you can do lemongrass over and over if you wish; I’ve done cilantro so many times I’m losing track!
February 7th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
aiyo, I was gonna make rendang this w/end, now, I cannot wait liao tsk tsk..the gravy goes so well with coconut rice ya ? yumss..coupled with boiled eggs..woo :))
February 8th, 2007 at 9:12 am
Penang Village closure totally no loss to you liow :O
Where you get the tamarind paste (is it same as the juice thingy?)
Did you use the M&P on the table? Maybe the trick is to squat down(but you better not do it lah) since my old aunties usually do the pounding squating down. Think the force delivered by the hand is different. Another tip is to pound few times-90deg & 45deg pestle to mortar;then knock pestle against mortar wall (to make lotsa noise) to shake off all the ingredients into the mortar again; and repeat…ya? Is that what you did ?
February 8th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
Ok. Thanks Kalyn!
MW - I ate with plain rice cos there was already a lot going on in the Rendang itself. I can’t wait to see your recipe to compare with mine and find out how to make the Beef Rendang more brown.
Tiga! I still have Layang Layang as the backup restaurant in case I don’t feel like pounding! Yeah the tamarind paste was the one I told you about before (from Ranch 99). About the squatting, ya! My mom used to do that in the past! I did it standing up - a bit tiring :p I did your suggested method for my Indonesian Nasi Goreng (post coming up next). I agree that’s the way to do it and also only pound little ingredients at a time.
February 8th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
What a great idea - labeling your ingredients in the photo. Next step: the exact location in the store. I don’t think I will be cooking something from scratch in the near future.
February 9th, 2007 at 8:14 am
LOL - Dried Chillies, Cinnamon Bark, Cardamom, Curry Powder - Aisle 5, dried goods and spices, shelf on the middle, left, facing back of supermarket. Tamarind Paste - Aisle 6 - Paste Section. Coconut Milk - Aisle 2 - Canned goods section. Ginger, Garlic, Lime, Shallots, Lemongrass, Galangal - Aisle 1, Vegetable / Produce Section. *ROFL*
February 12th, 2007 at 1:10 am
Yummy!! Thanks for another recipe with lemongrass!! :))
February 13th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
[…] Bay Area, California, U.S.A.Yich from Sim Cooks has made Beef Rendang for us this week, which she’s calling Beef Rendang Round One because she plans to keep improving on the recipe. Yick is featuring lemongrass, one of my favorite herbs, and her labeled photo of the ingredients is great! […]
January 30th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
hmmmmm,,,,, Yummy….it reminds me when i live in Indonesia 2 years ago. It’s one of my favorite meals there…..FYI, when you go to Indonesia, you can buy rendang only for 1 bucks…….and it’s easy to find restaurant which serve rendang, especially in Padang. Almost every place has rendang restaurant…..